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SSeeigy 


Jesus the Light o 
World 


Junior Department, First Year 


By / 
ETHEL WENDELL TROUT 


// 


The : eee Textbooks of Religious Education 
For Church Schools Having Sunday, Week 


Day, and Expressional Sessions 


Edited by JOHN T. FARIS, D.D. 


Philadelphia 


The Westminster Press 
1924. 





J » 


Covent 1921, 
by F. M. BRASELMAN © 


’ 





Preface 


The Westminster Textbooks of Religious Education are 
planned to meet the needs of churches seeking to unify their 
educational program. ‘The informational, devotional, and 
expressional phases of religious education have been, hereto- 
fore, to a large extent, independent of one another. ‘This 
lack of correlation has been detrimental to educational eff- 
ciency. Time and effort have been lost througl. duplication. 
Valuable information has failed to register itself in conduct 
because of the lack of suitable opportunities for expression. 
Many of our churches have been feeling their way toward 
better educational standards. It is in response to the re- 
quests and needs of these churches that the series of lessons 
has been undertaken. 

These textbooks are planned for church schools having 
a Week Day Session, a Sunday Session, and an E;xpressiona! 
Session meeting either on Sunday or on a week day. An 
absolute differentiation of the three phases of the educative 
process is neither possible nor desirable. The lessons are 
so arranged, however, that the Week Day Session is mainly 
informational, the Sunday Session more largely devotional, 
and the third session of the week largely expressional. 

Since the course is a unity, it is not necessarily confined to 
the plan suggested. It would be equally suited to a week- 
day church-school system having three sessions a week and 
unrelated to the Sunday-school program of the community. 
The course could be adjusted to any local condition, pro- 
vided the sequence of the lessons were maintained. 

Forty-two lessons of three sections each are provided for 
each grade, or year. It is thought that this will furnish ma- 
terial for a church-school program with three sessions per 
week throughout the public-school year. It is also believed 
that many schools will find the material sufficient for the use 
of the Sunday Session during that part of the year when 
Week Day Sessions are discontinued. Much of this sum- 
mer season might be spent in a rapid review of the work 


iii 


iv PREFACE 


covered during the other part of the year. No exact adjust- 
ment to any particular circumstances is attempted because 
of the fact that church schools differ widely in the matter 
of their summer sessions. Some are practically closed all 
summer; some continue on as extensive a basis as during 
other parts of the year. The whole matter of adjustment is 
best left to the local church-school administration. If a 
church school practically closes at the beginning of summer, 
it would be well for the authorities of that school to plan for 
a completion of each year’s course at that time. If the 
schooi runs on through the summer with undiminished at- 
tendance, more time may be taken for the lessons, a part 
of each book being left for completion in the summer ses- 
sions. Where this is done, the section intended for the 
week-day lesson may be taken on one Sunday of the summer 
period, the Sunday lesson related to this week-day lesson 
the next Sunday, and the expressional lesson on a third 
Sunday. 

In the first pamphlet, the lessons for the Primary Depart- 
ment are on God the Loving Father and His Good Gifts, 
God’s Care Calling Forth Love and Thanks, Love Shown by 
Giving. 

In the first pamphlet, the lessons for the Junior Depart- 
ment are on The Life of Christ. “ Jesus the Light of the 
World ”’ is the title for the first twenty-one lessons. 

The lessons for the Intermediate grades are built on the 
supposition that the majority of the pupils have become 
somewhat familiar with the Bible stories, especially those of 
the Old Testament. Hence the stories are not usually told 
in their entirety, but the treatment is more largely of analysis 
and illustration of the truths suggested by the narratives of 
the Scripture. If it be found that most of the pupils are not 
familiar with the Bible stories, the teacher should give more 
attention to the telling of these stories than is indicated in 
the lessons as they are here presented. 


TABLE OF CONTENTS 


EBay ares hu ARs age ser taut dS 1 AS cL ee Bad 


Be Rabel 


JESUS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


it 


il: 


Eh 


ine 


AAW. 


The Land Where Jesus Lived. 
The People and Their Rulers 
Iie CSU sma leery e dene ce 
Hover, on God and" ot) (Our 
COM OL Varennes vx cer icine) Cie 


The Temple of Herod....... 
The Forerunner of Jesus.... 
Our Love for the Churchas%. 


The Birth of Jesus Foretold.. 
seiiee itt: Oty esus ann aaneg 
Thanksgiving for God’s Best 

Gift to, the World) i245 2) 


Jesus’ First Visit to the ‘T'em- 

PHA aioe eran ere a Sued dln 
The Visit of the Wise Men.. 
Jesus the Light of the World. 


The Lite of a Boy in Naza- 
TEL LYM ey ect Peper iit vaste tve fob 
Jesus Visits the Temple a 
SECON MUP Meme ee oie, secs 
PpLessiolid im esstOler nats 


The Baptism of Jesus....... 
The Two Foundations....... 
Expressional Session ....... 


Vv 


vi 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


VII. 


Velie 


1D.e 


Dol 


DAE 


DA: 


x Lis 


CONTENTS 


The First Followers of Jesus. 57 
‘The Parable of the Sowereo 
Expressional Session ....... 64 


Jesus Begins His Ministry... 66 
The Final Call of the First 


Disciples’)... eine 68 
F.xpressional Session ....... 70 
The Sick Man Forgiven and 

Healed ot. 3.) ie 
The Parable of the Prodigal 

DON! sd, oe nee en 76 
Expressional Session ....... 81 


The Friend of the Friendless. 83 
The Story of the Good Sa- 
maritan )... /. 2 eee 87 


A Day in the Life of Jesus.. 91 
The Story of the Wise and 


the Foolish Virgins....... 96 
Expressional Session ....... 99 
The Majesty of Jésus.) aun 101 
The Last Judgment. 2. ues 106 
I’xpressional Session ...... erie’ 
The Raising of Lazarus: fae 111 
Farning the Right to Rule... 115 
Expressional Session)... 118 
The ‘Lriumphal Entry... 120 
A Parable in Action: (2. eae 


Expressional Session ....... 126 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


CHAPTER 


a: 


OEE 


Oa BE. 


XVIII. 


be, 


DOG 


XX, 


CONTENTS 


Diewbascover discs ere 
ive tlord S8sUp pen gers sient 
How We Should Come to the 

MOnoS | UP Det a nccanies Avis 


In the Garden of Gethsemane. 
‘hevArcest of }esus. eos was 
Woutare, tor thokiahty sai. fr. 


The Trials Before Annas and 
Miia DS oer ape esa) err, 
HeCtCE SDeIIA Ute aes 


PL GU OCaeenrmat Ati acs toe ara 
Win therVVayeto thetCross! 
What Shall We Do. with 

{Ra RGM rsa adi ate, SiN Cereb aE 


esis Om (ie MerOsei aan i cee oes 
Wesusuimi thie: Momb eisai. se 
How We Think of Jesus..... 


The Resurrection of Jesus... 
Jesus’ Appearances After the 
IVES ETO CULOL NAT \ een Ban UN: res 


Jesus Appears to the Disciples 
on the Seasof Galilee...... 
Ane (Great Gommission... ..: 
How We Can Have Jesus 
Wit USalO-DAYs Gv. oie uss 


Peckebaly 


FOLLOWING JESUS DAY BY DAY 


EARLY FOLLOWERS OF THE Lorp JEsus 


CHAPTER 


XXII. The First Christian Sermon. . 


The Courage of Peter and 
HOLE per arpa, AGS em rs ODM 
Preaching the Gospel, jo. -0e 


Vil 


158 


Viil 


CHAPTER ON BE 


CHAPIER Do Vis 


CHAPTER XXV. 


CHAPTER > ONAL. 


CUTAPTER © 1 XOXGV LI? 


CM ARTPRAm ee ROVILLL 


CONTENTS 


Working in Jerusalem....... 195 

Stephen, the First Christian 
Martyr 0 o)00 00) eae ee, 

How We Should Treat Others 202 


The Journey ot Philipyag eee 204 
Spreading the Good Tidings... 207 
Spreading the Gospel To-Day. 210 


Peter’s: Vision 2% 47 ssn Zig 
Peter and the Centurion..... PAW) 
Preaching to the Gentiles aan 
Saul Converted on the Way 

to Damascus...) 3020 saan aes 
Saul (Paul) Going to Preach 

the’ Gospel. i. 2) eee 226 
Giving Credit Where Crédit Is 

Due 8. ee 230 
Paul and the-Jailer’ 2. 22a Zaz 


What the Gospel Can Doze 
Some Ways in Which We 


May Help Others) 7 yee 241 
Paul Shipwrecked... ae 243 
Paul on the Island of Melita.. 249 
Serving, with |Oy >. 4. eee 22 


FOLLOWERS OF JESUS AND THE History oF THE CHURCH 


CHAPTER Ke Xe 


CHAPTER EX NEN 


Polycarp. of sinyina) ss ae Zan 
“Faithful Unto Death ?. 7705 261 
Faithfulness Every Day.... 267 


‘Augustine, the Heathen...... 271 
Augustine, the Christian.... 274 


Serving God in Our Youth... 277 


CONTENTS ix 


PAGE 

CHAPTER MOM Bernard’ of Clairvauxs..... 281 
Some of the Things that 
Bernard Accomplished for 

oir iS ene bare NO chaps 285 

Choosing Our Life Work.... 289 

CrHartkr XXXII. The Life of Martin Luther... 292 

Luther the Reformer........ 296 

The Voice of Conscience..... 301 


LATER FOLLOWERS OF THE LorpD JESUS 


CuaptER XXXII. William Carey, the Conse- 
crated; GONDIerEy waa, emir 307 
The Gospel for the World... 310 

How Juniors May Help to 

Give: the Gospel to ‘the 


ave ll vaveny ge erate ae 314 
GHaAptrrR: XXXIV. Robert Morrison, the. Trans- 
IEA KG) paren me MeOH ee a? pan ahigh S17 
Making the First Chinese 
LD LCR meant ate teds hae Mn Se 320 
Giving the Bible to the World 
Poca aati iy ere acca: 324 
CuapteER XXXV. Adoniram Judson, a Mission- 
Ate mlOneel dct. een ee 328 
The Bible Which Was Hidden 
Tieaeeillowiee mere ces 332 
Enduring Hardships as a 
(hristinacOldianecues wre 336 
APT ER anes ON ilen sl her book pought...% . fcc 339 
ches DOOKAVV OD tate kana 344 
How We May Help In Giving 
the Book to the World..... 349 


af 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

CHAPTER XXXVII. Overcoming Difficulties for 
the’ Gospel’s Sake sy, saa 352 
The Cree Alphabet? ee 355 


Making the Bible Our Own.. 360 


CHarterR XXXVIII. David Livingstone, the Path- 
Ninderc. ic PN eee 364 
A Light in'a Dark Flacex ge 367 
How I May Bea Light Bearer 370 


CHaptrR  XXXIX. The Story of JohnG; Paton wae. 
The Digging of the Well..... 375 
Living \Water si. 4 ee 381 


Livinc As Jesus LivEpD 


CHAPTER XL. Courage to Do the Right..... 385 
Exercising Self-Control. ..... 388 

How Juniors May Exercise 
Self-Control. 393 

CHAPTER XLI. Banded ‘Together for the 
Right 065 /5 See 396 
Unselfish Service. /) 2.23 399 

Ways in Which Juniors May 
serve 04.00. 403 


CHAPTER XLT. The Promised Land.) 
Signs of Progress in Ou 

Country: 40). (a ee 410 

The Hope of the World...... 414 


SUGGESTIONS TO THE TEACHER 


In preparing to teach the lessons in this book, the 
teacher should, in the first place, read the selections from 
the Bible given at the beginning of each lesson. You 
should then read through the lesson, noting points which 
will be of interest to your particular class, and hunting 
up all information possible in your available reference 
books. Naturally the limits of space make it impossible 
to give everything that is given in larger books, which 
perhaps devote an entire volume to a subject here treated 
in only a few words. 

With each lesson you should try to find a point of con- 
tact for your own class. The lessons are prepared with 
the thought of children nine, ten, and eleven years old, 
in mind, but if your class consists of nine-year-olds, or 
eleven-year-olds only, you will of course need slightly 
different treatment. Stories are suggested which the 
teacher may find of use in teaching the lesson. Often- 
times a modern missionary story will bring the lesson 
home to the class. 

The Week Day Session of the school is to be largely 
devoted to informational material. The Junior is at an 
age when his memory is keenly alert, and facts mastered 
now will become lifelong possessions. So, during this 
period, the geography and history of the Holy Land are 
given in brief form. Handwork, too, is useful for this 
session. Map drawing is suggested; a map of plasticine 
or made according to the suggestions of Chapter I, may 
be completed during the sessions. A large blackboard 
map of Palestine may be started, and filled in as the les- 
sons progress. It will be well to have also, a large wall 
map of Palestine to use in connection with the lessons. 

As the Week Day Session of the school is intended to 
appeal to the intellect, the Sunday Session is intended 
to appeal to the heart. The week-day lesson is a back- 
ground of fact, on which the Sunday lesson is to be built. 


X1 


xii DOT ate ACHE 


The Expressional Session is intended to give the pupils 
themselves an opportunity to put into words what they 
have gotten out of the other two sessions of the school. 
In the Junior Department this session must, of course, be 
under the guidance of an older person, but the pupils 
should be encouraged to express themselves and what 
they feel, in their own words. Various topics are given 
which may be assigned beforehand to the pupils—per- 
haps at the previous week-day session—so that the chil- 
dren may have an opportunity to think about them and 
to say a few words on the subject, or, in exceptional 
cases or with older pupils, to write a report or “ composi- 
tion,’ as they do in day school. Verses are also sug- 
gested in connection with this session which may be as- 
signed in advance to individual pupils, who may either 
learn them, or copy them and read them when called 
upon. ‘This method may be found available for use in 
classes of younger pupils. Hymns correlating with the 
lesson and various questions are also given which the 
teacher will use as seems wise in the individual class. 

Notebook Work is suggested, and can be carried out 
at any of the three meetings of the class. The prelim- 
inary directions are given with Chapter I. An outline 
life of Christ should be completed during the course. In 
connection with the Notebook Work you will find useful 
the small pictures of the life of Christ which you can 
obtain from the Wilde Picture Company, or the deposi- 
tories of the Board of Christian Education, at one cent 
apiece, 


REFERENCE Books WuicH W111, ProveE USEFUL, 


Kent—* Biblical Geography and History.” 

Davis—‘ A Dictionary of the Bible.” 

Grant—“ The Orient in Bible Times.” 

Schofield— Where He Dwelt.” 

Edersheim—“ The Life and Times of Jesus the 
Messiah.” 

Andrews—‘ Life of Our Lord.” 


LOCC ES TAA CH rR Xili 


SPECIAL SUGGESTIONS IN CONNECTION WITH 
EKACH LESSON 


CHAPTER I 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim. ‘To give the 
pupils a general idea of the land in which Jesus lived; to 
increase their knowledge about Palestine. In connection 
with Chapter I, it will be well to look up available ma- 
terial on the geography of Palestine. A large map of 
Palestine is an absolute necessity in connection with this 
course. A large outline map on the blackboard might be 
started, if you have any pupils capable of this. Other 
pupils may start relief maps, or, sand-table maps if you 
have a sand table. A map of the world showing the 
location of Palestine in relation to the other parts of the 
earth’s surface would be valuable. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show the 
children the background of the national life into which 
Jesus came. ‘Though this session, as a rule, will be devo- 
tional, it seemed best, in connection with this first lesson, 
to make it largely informational and to show in it the 
background of the national life into which Jesus came. 
Here the teacher would do well to read up on the history 
of Bible times between the Old and New ‘Testaments. A 
good, short summary will be found in Kent’s “ Biblical 
History and Geography,” or in Davis’ “ Dictionary ” in 
the article “ Maccabees.” ‘The teacher may find a point 
of contact here in a modern missionary story of the Near 
East. Such stories may be found in the books listed in 
the lesson, or in any of the Near East literature. 

Expressional Session. Here an attempt has been made 
to link up the lesson with the life of the pupil—to show 
the blessings which bur country enjoys, in comparison 
with the sufferings of the people of Israel in the days 
before Jesus came. The aim of this session is to bring 
the children to an expression of thanksgiving to God for 
the gift of his Son to the world. 


Cuapter II 


Week Day Session. ‘The ‘Teacher’s Aim: To give the 
pupils a general idea of the Temple of Herod; to show 


Xiv LOE RD AC EUR 


how the Jews loved their Temple, and to emphasize the 
truth that we should jove the church, which has taken 
the place of the Temple, but is more sacred, because, as 
we worship there we can worship Jesus Christ our Sav- 
iour as well as God, our heavenly Father. 

In connection with this lesson use the reproduction of 
Schick’s model of Solomon’s Temple, which may be ob- 
tained from the Presbyterian Board of Publication and 
Sabbath School Work, for fifty cents, or at least the ster- 
eograph, which you can get from Underwood and Under- 
wood, New York. Be sure to remember that these repre- 
sent Solomon’s Temple, while you are teaching about 
Herod’s ‘Temple, but that the general plan is the same. 

Locate Jerusalem on your large map, or on the outline 
map started on the blackboard in connection with Chap- 
ter [. 


Sunday Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To inspire in the 
children the sense that Jesus is truly God’s Son; that God 
prepared in wonderful ways to show this to the world. 
To show that though it sometimes seems hard to be faith- 
ful in everyday duties, the reward of faithfulness is sure. 

The teacher will find that Edersheim’s “ The Life and 
Times of Jesus the Messiah” is most helpful in connec- 
tion with this lesson. 

A modern application story is inserted between the les- 
son for the Sunday Session of the class and the Expres- 
sional Session. This may be used in connection with any 
one of the three sessions of the class. 

Expressional Session. ‘’he aim here is to deepen the 
pupil’s love for the Church by an expression of that love 
in his own words. Possibly some useful service in con- 
nection with the church worship might be suggested, 
such as helping to distribute hymn books, going errands 
for the pastor, or helping to give out the church calen- 
dars. A feeling of reverence and respect for God’s house 
should be particularly emphasized. 


CHAPTER IIT 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue 
to emphasize the wonderful ways in which God showed 


TO THE TEACHER XV 


the world that Jesus was the Messiah who was to save 
the world—how prophets and angelic messengers assured 
us of this truth. 

Be sure to have your pupils do the map work. We are 
not sure that Zacharias and Elisabeth lived in Hebron, 
but it is generally supposed so. 

These lessons give to the pupils the opportunity to 
learn the words of many of the famous songs of the 
Church. ‘Try to have them do this work, for this knowl- 
edge will be a valuable possession all their lives. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To tell anew the 
story of the birth of Jesus, and to make it vivid before 
your pupils. This story is so familiar to pupils of Junior 
age that they will like to tell it themselves. Let them do 
this, but try to have them bring out the lesson that it was 
God’s love which sent Jesus into the world, and that we 
should love and thank him for his eit. 

There are many beautiful pictures which may be used 
as an introduction to this lesson. Plockhorst’s An- 
nouncement to the Shepherds, Lerolle’s Visit of the 
Shepherds, or Bouguereau’s Holy Night are all easily 
procured from the picture companies which advertise in- 
expensive prints. They may be obtained in various sizes, 
from one cent apiece up. 

Expressional Session. This might well be made a song 
service, with especial emphasis upon the Benedictus and 
the Magnificat, and the old carols which your pupils no 
doubt know and like to sing. Let them suggest the 
songs, for you should remember always that in as far as 
this is possible with your class, this is to be an expression 
of their own thoughts and feelings. 


CuHapPtER [V 


Week Day Session. The ‘Teacher’s Aim: To make 
vivid to the pupils the first visit of Jesus to the Temple, 
and to impress upon them the ways in which God showed 
to those who were truly interested the truth that Jesus 
was his Son—the Messiah who was to save the world. 

In connection with this lesson use the map to point out 
the distance between Bethlehem and Jerusalem—five 


xvi TO aE a LOG EU, 


miles—where Mary and Joseph carried the Baby Jesus 
when they took him to the Temple. Use the Temple 
plan to show where the various events of the lesson took 
place. Edersheim’s “The Life and Times of Jesus the 
Messiah ” is most valuable in this connection. 

Possibly, in connection with Simeon’s phrase, “a light 
for revelation to the Gentiles,” you might like to use a 
device which has proved successful in some classes. A 
large white candle and a number of smaller candles are 
used. The large candle is hghted and put in the center 
of a circle of the smaller candles. These are then lighted 
from the center candle. So the light of Jesus spread 
through the world. 

Your pupils may enjoy learning to sing some of the 
songs whose words they have learned in connection with 
these lessons. Music will be found in most hymn books 
for the Benedictus, the Magnificat, and the Nunc 
Dimittis. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show ‘the 
pupils that though they cannot give gifts to Jesus as the 
Wise Men did, they can give greater gifts—themselves. 

The date of the visit of the Wise Men to Jesus is un- 
certain; the time celebrated in the Early Church was 
January 6, the twelfth night after Christmas. It will be 
interesting to look up in an encyclopedia the accounts of 
the celebration of this day. It was a time of revelry in 
old England. We ourselves do not celebrate Twelfth 
Night, as the people of England do, but in some of our 
churches the season is known as Epiphany, “ the appear- 
ance of the star,” and frequently a star of evergreen is 
used as a decoration at this time. 

You will find that there are numerous pictures that 
may be used to illustrate this lesson. There are pictures 
of the Wise Men following the star, and also kneeling 
before the Baby Jesus. Be sure to note that those pic- 
tures which show the Wise Men in the stable are incor- 
rect. At this time the family had removed to a house. 

Expressional Session. ‘The ‘Teacher’s Aim: To urge 
the pupils to express a desire to give themselves to Jesus 
—to give to him the gift of their hearts. ‘This session 


POs TESA GE ik, XVil 


might include a number of sentence prayers of dedica- 
tion. There are many hymns that may be used with this 
lesson. Some of them are mentioned in the pupil’s 
lesson. 


CHAPTER V 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To give to 
the pupils a clear idea of boy life in the days of Jesus. 
To show that his life was like that of other boys, except- 
ing that he was without sin. To urge them to try to be 
like him. 

We know that in his boyhood Jesus must have played 
games as other boys did. Luke 7:31, 32. He loved 
nature, as we can tell from the references which he makes 
fOMEmeKe oO. O-ele ei NAtthewW 20+ or, andiso omy (Lie 
was a diligent student of the Scriptures, for he was al- 
ways ready with a correct quotation from the Bible, 
which he knew in the original Hebrew, and not only in 
the Greek translation, which was commonly used in those 
days. He was a normal boy; and in these points all your 
pupils may emulate him. 

Your pupils will enjoy modeling the hills of Nazareth 
in plasticine or on the sand table. Follow the account 
given in the pupil’s lesson, making thirteen hills, with 
the shallow, saucer-like depression where Nazareth is 
situated, and the high hill, from which, in the clear air of 
Palestine the great vista of hill and sea could be seen. 
Geographical pictures of this region may be obtained 
from Underwood and Underwood, New York. Perhaps 
some one of your acquaintances may supply you with 
pressed flowers or treasures from Palestine to be used in 
connection with this lesson. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: Tio show the 
pupils the one glimpse of Jesus’ boyhood life that is 
given us. ‘To point out his knowledge that he was the 
Son of God and to lead our pupils to feel that they, too, 
are the children of God. 

The life of the Boy Jesus is hidden from us, but from 
the few glimpses that we have, we can see that he was 
loving, obedient, generous—the ideal of boyhood and 


XViil TO EEE EDA CTE AS 


girlhood. Hold up this ideal for the emulation of your 
pupils. Point out to them that he was not “ showing off 
in the Temple—that he was listening and learning, and 
that it was not an unusual thing for an intelligent boy to 
take part in the discussions of the ‘Temple sages. 

Hofmann’s picture of' the Boy Christ with the Doctors, 
Tissot’s pictures of Christ in the Temple, and the Sub- 
jection of the Boy Jesus, and the various pictures repre- 
senting him in the workshop, may be obtained from the 
Wilde, Perry, or Browne Picture Companies. 

Expressional Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To lead 
the children to an expression of a desire to be like Jesus, 
and to be the kind of Junior that he would have liked to 
play with. 

Have the pupils discuss the questions and _ topics, 
bringing out their own points of view. What kind of 
boys and girls would Jesus like them to be? Tell of 
some concrete cases where a decision for the right was 
made. ‘The hints for reports given in the pupil’s lesson 
may be carried far enough to fill the period. 


Cuaprer VI 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show how 
John prepared the way for Christ by preaching and bap- 
tizine. To emphasize the fact. that repentancemion 
wrongs done to others is one of the first steps in follow- 
ing Jesus. 

Show that Christ’s Messiahship was attested at the 
time of his baptism. Point out on the map the traditional 
site of Jesus’ baptism, at the fords of the Jordan, prob- 
ably at Bethabara, on the lower Jordan, near Jericho. 
The pupils may become confused between the ceremony 
at which Jesus was given his name, and the baptism. 
Do not let them feel that he was baptized twice. The 
giving of the name was a solemn ceremony among the 
Jews, but it was not baptism. 

The question of the temptation in the wilderness may 
be enlarged upon as may seem wise. ‘he Juniors are at 
an age of choice. Oftentimes they have a hard fight with 
the Tempter in choosing the right. Let them see that 


LOCUM EACE ER OB 


Jesus, too, was tempted to choose the pleasant but wrong 
way, but that he did not yield to the temptation. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To emphasize to 
the pupils the importance of hearing Jesus’ message, and 
laying a right foundation on which to build their lives. 
If you have a sand table you can have the early comers 
plan a model of a house on a rock, and of a house on the 
sand. They have been asked to do this at home, and will 
enjoy working out the idea in the classroom, with the 
materials there available. As an example of a poor foun- 
dation tell of a boy who did not study, but to his teach- 
er’s surprise, passed his final examinations brilliantly. 
He had cheated, though she did not know it. Did it do 
him any good? Of course not. He failed miserably in 
the next class, and had to be put back anyway. 

Expressional Session. Try to bring it about that this 
meeting is a genuine expression of opinion about right 
foundations for life. If the pupils can be made to feel 
that their futures will depend upon the foundations laid 
even while they are Juniors, you will have accomplished 
much. Some of the reports for this meeting should be 
written beforehand, and read aloud. 


Cuaprer VII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To impress 
upon the pupils the fact that Jesus’ call was answered by 
those who immediately began to spread the good tidings. 
To show that Jesus’ true followers will always do this. 

In connection with this lesson be sure that your pupils 
know the names of the disciples given in the lesson ma- 
terial. Perhaps it will seem wise to give them one of the 
verses containing the names of the Twelve, telling them 
to keep ears and eyes open for the first time each of the 
remaining disciples about whom we have not yet studied, 
is mentioned. Some of the verses containing the names 
of the disciples are given below. Perhaps you have 
pupils in your class who have the same given names as 
the first five disciples. Ask these pupils to write short 
essays about the disciples whose names they have. You 
might ask the girls and the remaining boys to find heroes 


xx TOT ERBACHER 


of the faith having the same given name as the first five 
disciples, as John Calvin, John Wyclif, John Bunyan, 
John G. Paton, Peter the Hermit, Philip Melanchthon. 


THE NAMES OF THE APOSTLES 


“ ‘These are the twelve apostles’ names, 
Peter, Andrew, John and James: 
Two pairs of brothers, fishers by the sea, 
When Jesus said, ‘Come, follow me.’ 
Then James the Less, and Thaddeus, too, 
Philip also and Bartholomew; 
Matthew, and Thomas, who doubted his word, 
Simon, and Judas, who sold his Lord?” 


“Jesus called them, one by one; 
Peter, Andrew, James and John; 
Then came Philip, Thomas, too, 
Matthew and Bartholomew; 

James, the one they called the Less 
Simon, also Thaddeus; 

Twelfth apostle Judas made, 

Jesus was by him betrayed.” 


“This is the way the disciples run: 
Peter and Andrew, James and John, 
Philip and Bartholomew, 
Thomas next, and Matthew, too, 
James ‘the less,’ and Judas (the greater), 
Simon the zealot, and Judas the traitor.” 


Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show that we 
must be careful to sow good seed in youth, so that we can 
reap a good harvest later; that it never pays to sow 
“ wild oats.” 

Boys and girls of the present day are much given to 
remarking that they will “try anything once.” Show 
them that this is an unchristian point of view. ‘Tell them 
that they should try anything that they know Jesus 
wants them to do, not only once, but all the time, but to 
be sure never to try even once those things of which 
Jesus would disapprove. Every criminal was once an in- 
nocent child. He tried evil once, and then more than 
once, and so became a criminal. Sow good seed, and 


TO THEM BAGHER xxi 


have a mind and heart ready to receive that good seed; 
then there will be a good harvest. 

Expressional Session. You have tried to emphasize the 
results of wrongdoing in the Sunday Session. In this 
session emphasize the results of right-doing. Urge the 
pupils to express positive resolves to do right. Leave the 
pupils with the impression that good soil—a heart and a 
mind prepared to hear and to do the right—will produce 
a harvest of good, thirty- or sixty- or a hundredfold. 


Cruapter VIII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: to impress 
upon the pupils the fact that Jesus does not despise the 
little, everyday acts of helpfulness and kindness; that 
they can please him by helping in little household duties, 
as well as in bigger things. 

The features of a Jewish wedding are different in many 
ways from the weddings about which our pupils know, 
and are very interesting. You can read a full description 
in Edersheim’s “ The Life and ‘Fimes of Jesus the Mes- 
siah.” Jesus’ words to his mother, “ Woman, what have 
I to do with thee?” are not disrespectful, as they sound 
in the translation. “ Woman” was a word often used as 
a term of address, and expressed even the greatest af- 
fection. Even when Jesus was on the cross, he used this 
word in speaking to Mary. John 19: 26. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show how 
willingly and gladly the first disciples dropped their busi- 
ness duties and their everyday activities and followed 
Jesus. 

The second call of the disciples came over a year after 
the first call. In the meantime they had been with Jesus, 
who had taught them and instructed them in many ways. 
They had, however, continued their regular way of earn- 
ing a livelihood. They had probably returned to their 
business as fishermen soon after the wedding at Cana. 
We do not know exactly when James became a follower 
of Christ. We are not told of his first call, as we are 
told of that of Andrew and John, Peter, Philip, and Na- 
thanael, but many people think that the phrase of John 


Xxil TO THE THACHER 


1:41, “He findeth first his own brother,” means that 
John, too, soon found his brother James. 

Your Juniors can perhaps be made to feel that this 
second call is something like their own decision to join 
the Church. Their baptism in infancy was the first 
sacrament that showed that they belonged to Jesus. 
Now they are at an age of choice, when they are to de- 
cide for themselves whether they will give themselves to 
Christ, and be his loyal followers—the second call to 
discipleship. 

Expressional Session. Lead the pupils to express the 
feeling of loyalty to Christ which the Sunday Session has | 
brought them to feel. Let them sing some “ Decision 
Songs,” such as ‘‘ Who Is on the Lord’s Side?” “ Fight 
the Good Fight,” “Tll Go Where You Want Me to Go.” 


Cuapter IX 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show the 
pupils that Jesus has all power—both to heal disease and 
to forgive sin. 

Use this lesson to give to the pupils information about 
Oriental houses. Show the simplicity of construction 
common among the poorer people, in contrast with the 
luxury of the rich. The house in which Jesus was at the 
time of this lesson was probably Peter’s. It may have 
been a house of the more simple type—a square box con- 
taining perhaps two rooms, with a flat roof that could be 
reached by an outside stairway. Edersheim, in “The 
Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah,” thinks, however. 
that Peter’s house could not have been one of the very 
smallest houses of the city, for besides the large family 
room, there must have been accommodations for Peter 
and his wife, and their children, if they had any, for 
Peter’s wife’s mother, and for Jesus. The house may 
have had an inner courtyard, surrounded by a covered 
gallery, and it may have been here that Jesus was speak- 
ing. The roof of the gallery could easily have been torn 
away. An interesting account of Syrian life in the pres- 
ent day is given in Rihbany’s “A Far Journey.” He 
describes his home as follows: “ My father’s house was a 


TOnLiHH PEACTIER XXiii 


typical, common, Syrian house. It was one story high, 
and consisted of two rooms, a living room and a store- 
room. It was built of roughly hewn stone, and had one 
‘door and two windows, which had wooden shutters, with- 
out glass. ‘The roof was the Biblical, earth-covered 
roof. ... On every Syrian roof there is a stone roller, 
with which the dirt is rolled down and made hard enough 
to ‘shed water.’ ‘Rolling the roof’ is a daily task for 
the man of the house in the winter season. Failure to do 
this causes the roof to soften and the rain to soak through 
and ‘drop’ into the house. The ‘ dropping’ is one of the 
most hateful things to a Syrian household.” 

With such a roof it is easy to see how the four friends 
of the paralytic could tear away the tiles and lower their 
friend into the room where Jesus was. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue the 
teaching of Jesus, the Saviour from sin, and of God the 
Father who loves and is willing and eager to forgive his 
children who have sinned. 

Children of Junior age are old enough to understand 
the meaning of wrongdoing. Emphasize the fact that 
when they are careless and thoughtless and disobedient 
they often hurt their parents; that their parents and 
teachers are better able to decide what is good for them 
than they themselves are. We should, however, lay more 
emphasis upon the love and forgiveness of the father in 
the parable, than upon the wickedness of the son. God’s 
love and kindness are the main points of the lesson. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘T’o lead the 
pupils to express the feeling of gratitude aroused by the 
kindness of God the Father and Jesus the Son, shown in 
the last lessons. 

If the Expressional Session is held on a week day, you 
may find that it is interesting to have your pupils give a 
simple dramatization of the story of the Prodigal Son. 
Let them work this out for themselves, if possible, 
though the teacher may supply a simple outline. Such 
an outline may be found in “ The Dramatization of Bible 
Stories,” by Elizabeth Erwin Miller. Remember, always, 
however, that this meeting should be left as largely as 
possible in the hands of the pupils themselves. } 


XXiv TOV THE TEACHER 


CHAPTER X 


Week Day Session. ‘he Teacher’s Aim: To make it 
clear to the pupils that Jesus is the Friend of all, that he 
wants us to be friends and neighbors of all, whether they 
are our neighbors in a geographical sense or not. 

With this lesson give information about Eastern 
customs of eating and drinking—the public character of 
meals—the use of perfumes. ‘The outline of a table 
shaped like the three sides of a hollow square may be 
drawn on the blackboard or made with blocks, by your 
pupils. Show how easy it was to serve the guests, who 
reclined on couches a little lower than the tables. These 
couches were so placed that the guests’ heads were 
toward the table, and they rested on their left elbows. 

This lesson again emphasizes Jesus’ love for sinners 
and his power to forgive. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to show that they love God, by doing kind acts for 
others. ‘To show how they can be neighbors to others. 

This lesson should lead to some practical expression 
of good will for others. If there is any pressing world 
need at the time when you are teaching it, bring this to 
the fore. At any rate, make it a missionary lesson, show- 
ing how much more the world is a neighborhood than it 
was in Jesus’ day, Even in the early days of our first 
American ancestors it took weeks for messages to go 
between New York and Philadelphia, and the people of 
Boston might have been massacred or starved to death 
before those in New York knew of their need, but in 
modern times we know, within a few days, what is going 
on in China or in India, by means of the cable and the 
telegraph. In so much we are the more world neighbors, 
more able to understand Jesus’ definition of a neighbor, 
than the lawyer was. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To con- 
tinue the teaching of Jesus’ love for others. 

The story of the Good Samaritan is another parable 
which lends itself well to dramatization. However, it 
may be better to have the class express the feeling of 
love for others aroused by the stories of the week, by 


TORTIE ST HAGE ER XXV 


doing some act of kindness—bringing gifts for a mis- 
sionary box, or planning some act of kindness toward 
strange or foreign children in their school, whom they 
have never considered as neighbors. Try to help them to 
keep from being careless and self-righteous Pharisees, as 
Simon was, or as the priest and the Levite were. Help 
them to see that they should try to be like the Good 
Samaritan, and like Jesus. 


CHAPTER XI 


Week Day Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: 'T'o show the 
heroic conduct of Jesus, and how he used his strength 
and power to help men. 

Make the geography of this lesson clear to the pupils. 
A brisk review of the facts about the Sea of Galilee, given 
in connection with Chapter I, will arouse interest. Show 
how it was possible for the people on the shore to keep 
track of the course of the boat. Then ask why Jesus 
wanted to be alone with the disciples. Show how he 
gave up his own wishes in order to help those who came 
to him. 

The lesson material is long, covering two distinct 
stories; the feeding of the five thousand, and Jesus’ ap- 
pearance to the disciples on the sea, Perhaps you will 
find that the period is filled with the mere story of the 
day’s events. Be sure to show that they all occurred in 
one day—that Jesus filled the hours to the brim. 

There are many modern versions of the story of the 
feeding of the five thousand written from the point of 
view of the lad with the loaves and the fishes—the story 
which he told his mother on his return home, and his 
amazement and joy that the Master had made use of his 
little store of food. If you have a clever story-teller in 
your class, let him tell the story as if he had been the boy. 
Or perhaps you may prefer to give your entire class a 
written lesson, asking the pupils to pretend that they 
were the boy telling the story at home. They are ac- 
customed to this sort of work in day school. Let them 
refer to the four Bible accounts as they choose, and com- 


XXvi TOSTR Gael PAGE BR 


bine the stories of all the Gospel writers. You might 
have the best stories read in the Expressional Session. 

It has been suggested in connection with the pupil’s 
lesson that the pupils make an offering for some one in 
need of food, thus following the example of Jesus in 
feeding the hungry. You yourself will know the most 
pressing need of the day. Perhaps local charities will be 
best. Perhaps a child with a plentiful school lunch might 
share with another who had less. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to understand the importance of doing well each 
day’s duties, in preparation for the future. 

In this lesson bring home to the pupils the lesson of 
preparedness. Show them how even in their everyday 
lives they miss many things because they are unprepared. 
In the world of the Spirit preparedness is even more im- 
portant than it is in the world of material things, 

Have the pupils compare the marriage customs given 
in this lesson with those described in the lesson on the 
miracle at Cana of Galilee, Chapter VIII. 

Expressional Session. The eacher’s Aim: ‘I‘o show 
that Jesus gave up himself and his own wishes in order 
to help others; that he was always prepared to help, and 
always ready for emergencies. 

In addition to the regular lesson, have selected pupils 
read their stories of the feeding of the five thousand. 


CuHapter XII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show 
Jesus the Saviour of the world in his glory, and to im- 
press the fact that he was the fulfillment of the Law and 
the Prophets. 

With this lesson carry on a brisk geographical review, 
pointing out on the map how far from Jerusalem Jesus 
had come. Show Cesarea Philippi, and Mount Hermon. 
The only time of which we have record when Jesus was 
outside Jewish territory, since thé return from Egypt, 
was when he went to Tyre and Sidon shortly before this 
time. Matthew 15: 21. 


TOC Bed ACTER XXVIi 


Ask the pupils to find the places where the voice from 
heaven had declared that Jesus was God’s Son. 

1. At the time of the baptism. Matthew 3:17; Mark 
Heaiieel ake oes 

2. At the time of the transfiguration. Matthew 17:5; 
Mark Gel eLuke9:35: 

Close the lesson by pointing out the fact that we can- 
not always remain in a state of exaltation. We must 
help in practical ways if we want to please Jesus. Peter’s 
wish to remain upon the mountain and worship did not 
accord with Jesus’ plan of ministering to mankind. Wor- 
ship and service combined—faith and works—are ex- 
emplified in Jesus’ life. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to understand that where they do kind acts for 
others in Jesus’ name and for his sake, they are doing 
such acts for him. With Juniors do not emphasize too 
much the Judgment Day, but help them to see how they 
can make the best preparations for that day by using 
their lives as Jesus would have them do. A cup of cold 
water given in his name is given to him. The story of 
Sir Philip Sidney, who, in the days of Queen Elizabeth, 
shared his last bit of water with a dying soldier, made a 
great impression in those days, and has come down to us 
as a deed of perfect knighthood. But over and over 
again in the Great War there were many tales of un- 
named soldiers who had not only shared their last drop 
of water and their food with others, but had given it all— 
soldiers whose death has shown how Christ’s ideals have 
spread even since the days of Queen Elizabeth, so that 
nowadays heroic acts of service are the expected thing, 
rather than the unusual. 

If possible, have the members of the class do some of 
the things mentioned in the lesson text—“for Jesus’ 
Salkeas 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to realize the ideal which Jesus set before them— 
service for others for his sake. 

Have one of your pupils read a translation of Tolstoy’s 
“Where Love Is, There God Is,” if possible, or Long- 
fellow’s “ Legend Beautiful.” 


XXVIII TOPE tas Grd iakk 


Have before the class a copy of Raphael’s Transfigura- 
tion, which shows the contrast between the scene on the 
mountain top, and the scene at its foot. “On the moun- 
tain is Christ in the center, with Moses and Elijah on 
either side, raised from the ground to show that they are 
spirits, not flesh and blood. Peter, James, and John are 
reclining on the mountain top, shading their eyes from 
the light. Below are the other nine disciples trying to 
cure the demoniac boy held by his father and mother dur- 
ing one of his spasms. ‘Iwo of the disciples are pointing 
to Christ above as if looking there for help. The boy’s 
hand also is pointing upward. The contrast is between 
the sorrows of earth, and heaven and its powers above. 
It is a vision of heaven’s interest in this world, and its 
desire and power to help. It is a gospel sermon.” 


CuHaApPtER XIII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to realize the truth of Jesus’ words of the Memory 
Verse, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that be- 
lieveth on me, though he die, yet shall he live.” 

Begin the lesson by asking the names of some of Jesus’ 
personal friends. ‘Then introduce the Bethany family, 
bringing in all the facts that we know about them—the 
characterization of Mary and Martha as given in Luke 
10: 38-42, the account of the death ef Lazarus, John, 
chapter 11, the account of the feast at the house of Simon, 
Matthew .26:6-18.. There are many conjectures as to 
who Simon was, some people thinking that he was the 
father of the brother and the sisters, others thinking that 
he was Martha’s husband. At any rate he was closely 
connected with the family, and he loved Jesus. The word 
“leper ” used in connection with his name probably indi- 
cates that he had been a leper, but that Jesus had healed 
him. Otherwise he would not have been allowed by the 
Law to give a feast. 

Emphasize the fact that Jesus was not unkind in not 
hurrying to the aid of Lazarus as soon as he heard of his 
illness. ‘The purposes of God were to be carried out; it 
was necessary that Lazarus should die, in order that he 


POS ieee UH A GH ER xxix 


be brought back to life, and so show forth a great proof 
of the Messiahship of Jesus. It is not necessary in Junior 
classes to show the difference between the restoration to 
life of Lazarus and the resurrection of Jesus. Lazarus, of 
course, was to die again. Lazarus’ restoration to life was 
similar to the other miracles of restoration which Jesus 
had performed, excepting that in his case there had been 
an interval of four days between death and the restora- 
tion, whereas in the other miracles of the same kind the 
restoration had followed the death almost immediately. 

Read in your Bible dictionary or in Edersheim the ac- 
counts of Jewish burial customs. Burial, in the warm 
climate of Palestine, followed almost immediately after 
death. The tomb in the garden was an indication that 
the Bethany family was well-to-do. Private burial 
places were quite usual among rich families, and there 
are comparatively few city cemeteries, those which there 
were being used only by the very poor. 

Have the pupils write the story of the raising of Laza- 
rus from the point of view of the different onlookers, and 
from that of Lazarus himself, as suggested in the pupil’s 
lesson. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: T'o point out the 
necessity for using the opportunities and the talents 
which God has given us. 

Begin your lesson by giving a brief review of the 
historical background which made it possible for Jesus’ 
hearers to be familiar with the setting of the parable of 
to-day’s lesson. This is given in the pupil’s lesson. 
Herod Archelaus had had to visit Rome and to petition 
the emperor before he was allowed to rule Judea accord- 
ing to the provisions of his father’s will. A deputation 
of Jews opposed his succession to his father’s throne, and 
he was given the title “ ethnarch,” and not “king,” as his 
father was. He had ruled only a very short time, and 
then been deposed. 

Bring out the difference between the parable of the 
Pounds and the parable of the Talents, as given in the 
pupil’s lesson, A talent of gold was equivalent to about 
thirty thousand dollars, while a pound was worth only 


XXX TO THE TEACHER 


about sixteen dollars, so that the investment was not 
very great. 

There is much discussion as to whether these two par- 
ables are different versions of the same story. This, how- 
ever, seems unlikely, because the differences are so 
marked. It is quite possible that Jesus told similar 
stories to different audiences, varying them to suit the 
lesson which he wished to teach. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘Io empha- 
size the fact that Jesus wants his followers to follow his 
example in serving others. 

Be sure to let the pupils themselves take this lesson in 
charge. Have them read their essays about the raising of 
Lazarus. If the essay writers have lively imaginations 
and have studied the characteristics of the persons from 
whose points of view they are writing, they will be most 
interesting. ‘There have been many discussions of Laza- 
rus’ feelings, in literature. References to some of these 
are given in the pupil’s lesson. ‘There are few accounts 
available of what the sisters or other onlookers thought. 
If anyone tells of the tradition that Lazarus never spoke 
again because he was so fearful of dying a second time, 
say that this story has no basis in fact. 


PorEMs THAT CoRRELATE WITH THE LESSON 


Tennyson’s “In Memoriam,” Stanzas 31, 32. 
Browning’s “‘ Epistle of Karshish.” 
Rosetti’s “ Jesus Wept.” 


Books TuHat Wit. Tent, You Morr Anout THE Lesson 


Trumbull’s “ Studies in Oriental Social Life,’ chapter 
on “ Funerals and Mourning.” 

Edersheim’s “ Sketches of Jewish Social Life.”’ 

Maclaren’s “ The Life of the Master,” chapter on “ The 
Home in Bethany.” 

EK. S. Phelp’s “ Come Forth!” 


Ask the pupils what Mary’s talent was. What was 
Martha’s? Did they make use of these? Do they sup- 
pose that Lazarus made use of his opportunity to tell of 


TOs HET RAGCHER XXxXI 


Christ, after his restoration to life? What do the pupils 
think became of him and his sisters? Some writers think 
that he was killed quite soon by his Jewish enemies; 
others think that he escaped from Jerusalem and lived a 
long time. At any rate we do not hear of him or his 
sisters as active members of the Early Church, and it is 
improbable that they would keep in hiding. That would 
have been very unlike the boldness shown by the other 
apostles. 


Cuapter XIV 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show 
Jesus as King of the world and to emphasize the fact that 
we should accept him as heartily as the Jews accepted 
him on that joyful Sunday of the triumphal entry. 

Jesus wanted to give the people one more chance to 
accept him as their King, and he entered the city as the 
prophets had foretold, riding on a colt, the foal of an ass, 
the beast ridden by the kings of the Jews in times of 
peace. He rode from Bethany in the midst of the gather- 
ing crowds of passover pilgrims up the road to the Holy 
City. As he journeyed, more and more people joined the 
procession, singing the passover psalms, Psalms 113 to 
118, known as the “ Hallel,” particularly the part which 
was considered Messianic, Psalm 118: 26. 

The procession passed through the Golden Gate, in the 
eastern city wall. The Crusaders in the eleventh century 
found this gate closed excepting on one day of the year— 
Palm Sunday. Of late years it has not been opened even 
on that day. 

There are various questions discussed in connection 
with the second cleansing of the Temple. Some students 
think that the cleansing of John, chapter 2, at the begin- 
ning of Christ’s ministry, is confused with this, and that 
there was only one cleansing; others think that they are 
two separate events. Again, there is a discussion as to 
whether this cleansing was on the same day as the tri- 
umphal entry, or on the next. These questions, however, 
need not be discussed unless the pupils themselves ask 
about the points. 


XXxXii TO 'THE-TEACHER 


Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: to show how 
Jesus emphasized the ideal of service. 

As the life of Jesus draws to its close, it will be well 
to remind the pupils of some of the ways in which he 
served, in addition to that mentioned in the lesson. From 
the time of his baptism»his life was devoted to others, to 
teaching and healing and ministering. He never spared 
himself, never hesitated to give, even in the moments of 
greatest weariness. Make a blackboard outline showing 
ways in which Jesus served. For instance, use the 
headings: 


1. Jesus the Healer. 

2. Jesus the Provider. 

3. Jesus the Teacher. 

4, Jesus the Miracle Worker. 
5. Jesus the Story-Teller. 


Have the pupils give examples of these various ways 
of serving; for instance, under the first heading, enter the 
healing of the paralytic, of Peter’s wife’s mother, and so 
on. Under “ Jesus the Provider,” show how he helped 
by providing food for the multitudes. 

If you have opportunity begin to teach something of 
the history of the passover, which will be continued in 
your next week-day session. ‘The material is valuable 
and instructional. But remember that your main aim is 
to help the pupils to feel the ideal of service which Jesus 
set before them. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To lead the 
pupils to express their desire to serve—to pledge them- 
selves to do some service for Christ. Let them see that it 
is not necessary to be ministers or missionaries in order 
to serve Christ acceptably—there are many true servants 
of Christ in every calling and every position in life. 
However, if there are any in your class who express a 
desire to serve in one of these ways, encourage them in 
every way. 


LESSONS FoR SPECIAL Days 


Teachers may desire to shift lessons in order to bring 
the Christmas and Easter lessons at the proper dates. 


TO THE TEACHER XXXili 


CHAPTER XV 


Week Day Session. The T'eacher’s Aim: ‘To give to 
the pupils information concerning the celebration of the 
Jewish passover. 

The material supplied in this lesson has been largely 
drawn from Edersheim’s “’The Life and Times of Jesus 
the Messiah,” which gives a most interesting discussion 
of passover customs. It would be interesting to your 
class if you can show them the flat cakes of unleavened 
bread—“ matzoth ”—which the Jews still use in the 
passover season. Perhaps your pupils may have Jewish 
classmates in day school through whom you can obtain 
information about where you may procure these. Re- 
mind them that the passover and Easter are close to- 
gether—that the date of Easter is different in different 
years because it is dependent on the new moon after the 
vernal equinox, as was also the passover—that is, Easter 
Sunday will be always the Sunday after the Jewish pass- 
over celebration. The Jewish pupils in our public schools 
are frequently absent on Jewish holidays of which we 
know nothing. Pupils should know after this lesson what 
feast they are celebrating at about the same time that we 
have Easter. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to appreciate the meaning of the Lord’s Supper— 
the Communion—and to rouse a desire in them to become 
members of Christ’s Church. 

Read the accounts of the establishment of the Lord’s 
Supper as given in the Synoptic Gospels, and in I 
Corinthians 11:238-27. John’s Gospel gives no account of 
the institution. Various explanations of this omission 
are made. The most probable explanation seems to be 
that as John wrote his Gospel so much later than the 
other Gospels, the celebration of the Communion was so 
well known that he did not think it necessary to tell of it. 
It is generally agreed that in his Gospel he tries to supply 
facts and events which were omitted by the Synoptists. 

The events of the day and night of the Lord’s Supper 


XXXIV TO; THE THACHER 


are given by Dr. Cleland B. McAfee in the following 
order: 
1. The preparation for the passover, during the day. 
2. The eating of the passover supper, during which 
occurred: 
(a) The washing of the disciples’ feet. 
(b) Jesus’ sadness about his betrayal. 
(c) The withdrawing of Judas from the room. 
. The giving of the Lord’s Supper. 
The talk given in John, ch. 14. 
The singing of a hymn. Matt. 26:30. 
. The talk given in John, chs. 15 and 16, on the way to 
the Garden of Gethsemane. 
. The prayer of John, ch. 17%, on the way, during a 
pause just before coming to Kidron. 
. The Gethsemane experience. 
. The coming of Judas and the arrest of Jesus. 


co CO Oa 


Books to WHICH THE TEACHER May REFER 


Denney—‘ The Death of Christ.” 

Kerr—“ Coming to the Communion.” 

Expressional Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To bring 
those pupils who have not yet joined the Church to do 
so; to give those pupils who have joined the Church a 
renewed sense of the solemnity and importance of the 
Lord’s Supper. 

Perhaps you may think it wise to have your pupils read 
all four accounts of the establishment of the Lord’s Sup- 
per—Matthew 26 :26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:19, 20; 
I Corinthians 11:23-27, These passages are very similar, 
but reading them all will emphasize the lesson. 

Try to lead the pupils to an honest desire to follow 
Jesus’ command, and to keep the feast in his memory. 


CHAPTER XVI 


Week Day Session. The T'eacher’s Aim: To show how 
Jesus, through prayer and suffering, prepared for the 
death which he knew was about to come to him. To 
show that prayer is the best preparation when we know 
that something difficult is coming to us. 


TO THE TEACHER XXXV 


There are many beautiful pictures of Christ in’ the 
Garden of Gethsemane which may be used with this les- 
son. That of Hofmann is perhaps the most easily 
obtained. 

Be sure to emphasize with your class the courage of 
Jesus. The pupils will not appreciate so much the 
mental struggle as if they were older. They will, how- 
ever, feel indignant that the apostles did not “stand by ” 
him when he was suffering so greatly. They are at an 
age when loyalty to their friends is a strong character- 
istic. ‘Though they may not be able to express their 
sentiments, they think that “ going back” on their chums 
is a fault particularly to be condemned, and they will feel 
indignant at the disciples for their conduct. Try to bring 
out the point of Jesus’ forgiveness of the disciples’ neg- 
lect, and his gentle words of rebuke. He taught even 
to the end of his life the beauty of forgiveness. 

Have put on the blackboard the sketches given with 
this lesson and the next. Have the pupils keep clearly in 
mind the order of events. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue the 
teaching begun in the Week Day Session, and to impress 
the fact that Jesus was now ready to face the physical 
-suffering and death which lay before him. 

In this period try to appeal to the loyalty for Christ 
which the pupils feel. Show them the ugliness of Judas’ 
disloyalty and try to impress upon them ways in which 
they can be loyal to their Saviour. They can betray him 
in little ways, even if they do not betray him as Judas 
did. Discuss such questions as the following: 

Are you a traitor to Jesus when you stay home from 
church and Sunday school, without a good reason? 

Are you a traitor to Jesus if you exaggerate and tell 
falsehoods, or deny that you have done something that 
you really have done? 

Are you a traitor to Jesus when you neglect to do those 
things that you know he wants you to do? 

The collection of colored pictures by William Hole, 
R.A., which may be obtained from Thomas Nelson & 
Sons, gives several pictures which may be used with 
these lessons, as well as with others of the course. | 


 Xxxvi TOSTHE“LEACHER 


Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To lead the 
pupils to express their thankfulness to Christ, for his 
goodness to them; their loyalty to him; their love for 
him. ‘To lead them to understand the meaning of true 
courage. 

It would be interesting to have as many pictures of 
the life of Christ as it is possible to obtain to use in 
connection with this and the remaining lessons of the 
course. Have them on the walls or spread out on tables, 
and prepare the leader of the meeting to point out the 
various scenes. Lead the pupils to express their desire to 
be loyal to a Saviour who loved them so greatly and 
showed such true courage in living and suffering and 
dying for the world. 


CHAPTER XVII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue 
to impress upon the pupils how much Christ endured for 
their sakes; to show him in all his majesty as he stood 
before the highest court of his people. 

Tell a story something of this sort: George Washing- 
ton was a true patriot, the Father of our country, the 
leader of our armies against our enemies. There were 
many people in those days who said that George Wash- 
ington did not truly want the United States to be a re- 
public; that he wanted to make himself a king. We know 
that George Washington was a true patriot, that he loved 
our country more than he loved his own ambitions. He 
refused to be made President a third time for fear that 
people should think this, and fortunately most of the 
people of the United States knew that Washington was 
a great and noble man, so his life ended in honor and 
respect. But suppose he had been arrested and court- 
martialed and shot at sunrise for being a traitor. What 
would we think of the blindness of the people who did 
this? Then what shall we think of those who actually 
did put to death Jesus, the Saviour of the world? They 
were people whom he loved and gave his life to save. 
They denied him and refused to acknowledge him. 
(Bring the lesson down to the pupils’ own lives. Are 


LOrlohy LEACH ER XXXvii 


they acknowledging Jesus as their Saviour, or are they 
refusing to do so? Is he on trial before them, or are they 
his friends? Show that they must be one or the other.) 

There are very interesting accounts of the office of the 
high priest to be found in Davis’ “ Dictionary of the 
Bible,’ under the article “high priest.” Information 
about Annas and Caiaphas can also be found in the ar- 
ticles about them. 

Sunday Session. ‘The ‘Teacher’s Aim: T'o lead the 
pupils to feel the meaning of true loyalty. ‘To make them 
see that they deny Christ when they do not stand up for 
him or for those things for which the Christian religion 
stands. 

Junior boys are given to the habit of swearing. An 
incident of the following sort may be used with the les- 
son: John was really a Christian boy. But though his 
mother and father and his teacher had always taught him 
that it was wrong for him to take God’s name in vain, he 
had gotten into the habit of doing so. He knew that he 
should not swear and curse; yet because many of the 
boys whom he thought were manly did swear and curse, 
he thought that it was manly to do so—and he tried it. 
He felt dreadfully the first day he swore, but he swore 
again and very soon it became a habit. And habits, you 
know, are pretty hard masters. John didn’t realize how 
far he was going until one day Philip opened his eyes. 
“Say, John,” said Philip, “Walter says you go to the 
Brick Sunday School. Pretty good Sunday-school pupil 
you are! A fellow that swears the way you do must put 
up a good bluff to get in at all!” 

For the first time John realized what he was doing. 
He was denying Jesus and his teachings. He was as bad 
as Peter. After that he had a hard fight against the bad 
habit that had control over him, but he finally won out, 
and now you will never hear him use an oath. 

Pictures that may be used in connection with the les- 
son are as follows: Peter in the Courtyard, by William 
Hole; Christ Before Pilate, by Munkacsy ; Christ Leaving 
the Pretorium, by Doré; Peter in the Courtyard, by Bida. 

Expressional Session. ‘he Teacher’s Aim: To show 
the pupils ways in which they deny Christ as truly as 


XXXVili TO THE GEACHER 


Peter did. ‘To lead them to express a desire to avoid such 
denials and to express loyalty to Christ. 

Junior pupils want fair play, and in the lessons we 
have had this week, they have seen Jesus treated most 
unfairly. They should be eager to express their sense of 
this unfairness, and this should lead to an expression of 
loyalty on their own parts. Impress this feeling of loy- 
alty by letting them show it in some way. Ask them to 
try all week particularly to be loyal to Jesus in thought, 
word, and deed. 


CHAPTER XVIII 


Week Day Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To continue 
the story of the last day of Jesus’ earthly life, and the 
account of the suffering which he endured as the Saviour 
of the people of the world. 

There are many interesting stories told of Pontius 
Pilate and his wife, Claudia Procula, which you may use 
to obtain background for his character. Pilate was in- 
volved in many quarrels with the Jews and was finally 
summoned by Tiberius Cesar, the Roman emperor, to 
answer the charges of misgovernment brought against 
him. He went to Rome in A. p. 387. Tiberius died before 
he reached Rome, but the case was carried through. As 
a result Pilate was banished to Vienne, on the Rhone 
River in southern France. There is a story which tells 
us that he went insane, and spent his life in constantly 
trying to wash blood stains from his hands. Like Lady 
Macbeth in Shakspere’s “ Macbeth,” he failed. Legend 
tells us that finally, after trying to wash his hands in the 
waters of a lake on Mount Pilatus in Switzerland and 
failing to cleanse them, he committed suicide there. 
From this event Mount Pilatus received its name. 

A most interesting account of the illegalities of Jesus’ 
trial may be found in David Smith’s “In the Days of His 
Flesh.” 

The pictures, Christ Before Pilate, either by Munkacsy 
or by William Hole, will be found of assistance with 
this lesson. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue to 
impress the story of how much Jesus endured for the 


OSLER PAGE EK XXXix 


world, and to bring to the pupils’ hearts a greater love 
for the One who endured so much for them. 

The way over which tradition says that Jesus bore the 
cross is called the “ Via Dolorosa,” or Way of Sadness. 
There are two sites identified as Golgotha, or Calvary, 
Golgotha being the Aramaic word for “skull,” Calvary 
from the Latin word of similar meaning, calvarius. ‘The 
most probable site is a hill outside the city which could 
easily have derived its name from its skull-like shape. 
There are many pictures which may be used in con- 
nection with this lesson. Some of the best are as follows. 
Copies may be obtained from the Wilde or the Perry 
Pictures Company. 


PetralebciOLesmilaler iret mec S Munkacsy 

Christ» leaving the Pratorium..... >. Dore 
Guido Reni 

CCC ETOULO NE eres et are Antonio Ciseri 
[Hofmann 

BS LCISAVV Ieee DL Cdl ots a etek. Doré 

eanimon tie a(eross iat. cr > Wena 


The pupils will be interested in seeing the various 
forms of the cross. According to Edersheim and An- 
drews, there were three forms used: The Saint Andrew’s 
cross, the Latin cross, and the Greek cross. You can find 
pictures of these crosses in Webster’s Dictionary under 
the word “cross.” Have the pupils sketch them on the 
blackboard. It is usually agreed that Jesus’ cross was the 
Roman, or Latin, cross. 

Expressional Session. A very interesting expressional 
session for this week might be planned by using as a 
basis the hymn, “In His Own Raiment Clad,’ Hymnal, 
Number 696. The pupils may take the different parts, 
and they will enjoy doing this. 


CHAPTER XIX 


Week Day Session. ‘The T’eacher’s Aim: To show the 
pupil Christ’s great love for the world, and the people 
in it. 


xiii LOFTH EET EAGHER 


London, plunging the country into gloom—‘ Wellington 
defeated!” But, when the fog broke at last, the sema- 
phore upon the top of Winchester Cathedral was still at 
work-——“ W-e-1-l-i-n-g-t-o-n d-e-f-e-a-t-e-d t-h-e e-n-e-m-y” 
and, all the more glorious for the preceding gloom, the 
wonderful news sped across the land and lifted up the 
spirits of the people into grateful joy—“‘ Wellington de- 
feated the enemy!” 

“So was the dreadful gloom of Calvary dispelled by 
the glorious victory of Easter Day! So what had seemed 
defeat was changed to triumph! And when Christ shall 
have come to his own in the hearts of men, the prophecy 
of that glad Faster Day shall be fulfilled.” 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To lead 
the pupils to express their love for Jesus and their ap- 
preciation of his sacrifice for them. 

In this session try to lead the pupils to show that they 
understand the proofs of the resurrection. Lead them to 
go over the appearances of Christ again and again, and to 
understand how well proved the resurrection was. 


CHAPTER XXL 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To impress 
upon the pupils Jesus’ command that his followers should 
teach others about him—that he wants us all to feed his 
sheep and his lambs as he wanted Peter to do. 

Link this lesson with John, chapter 10, the parable of 
the Good Shepherd. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, told 
Peter, the under shepherd, to feed and tend his sheep and 
his lambs. There are many pictures of Jesus the Good 
Shepherd which may be used in connection with this 
lesson. 

The question of Peter concerning John need not be 
mentioned unless the pupils themselves bring it up. Evi- 
dently there was in circulation at the time when John 
wrote his Gospel a story that Jesus had said that he 
would never die. John specifically corrects this by telling 
what Jesus actually did say to him. 

Go rapidly over the geography of Palestine once more. 
Show how the disciples had gone, as Jesus had com- 


ei eb reA ChE xliii 


manded, from Jerusalem to Galilee. The journey, ac- 
cording to Andrews’ “The Life of Our Lord,” would 
take about five days. When they came to Galilee they 
went about their usual tasks. The best way to wait for 
the Lord’s coming is to do our daily duties faithfully and 
earnestly. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To impress still 
further through the Great Commission, Jesus’ command 
to his followers to preach and to teach. 

The mountain in Galilee where Jesus spoke these words 
is unnamed. It may have been Mount Tabor or Mount 
Hermon. Jesus led out to this place not only the Eleven, 
but many other of kis followers. The next scene in his 
life, however, is again in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, 
“over against Bethany.” Point out these places on the 
map. Constantine, the emperor of Rome, in 315 marked 
by a chapel the place which was in that day the tradi- 
tional site of the ascension. All the sites of the events of 
Christ’s life near Jerusalem are, however, doubtful. The 
main point to emphasize is the repetition of the command 
of Jesus that his followers were to teach and to preach, 
beginning at Jerusalem and going to the whole world. 
Another point to bring out is the difference in the attitude 
of the disciples at this time and at the time of the cruci- 
fixion. Then they were sad and discouraged. From now 
on they were happy and courageous, and these two char- 
acteristics mark the Christian faith throughout the ages. 
Lead the pupils to help to spread the good tidings. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To lead the 
pupils to express a desire to help in doing Christ’s work. 
Get them to mention ways in which they may help—they 
might be preachers, missionaries, doctors, nurses. Yes, 
but if we were all preachers, doctors, missionaries, nurses, 
God’s work could not go on. If he chooses us for these 
services we must do them gladly and with all our hearts, 
but if he does not, we must serve him in every way that 
we can. Lead them to express the will to serve him in 
whatever station in life it may please-~God to place them. 


PART II 
FOLLOWING JESUS DAY BY DAY 
Cuaprer XXII 


Week Day Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To give to 
the pupils the details of the beginning of the Christian 
Church. 

Find out, in beginning this story, whether or not your 
pupils are studying Greek or Roman history in day 
school. Ask them to tell something about the lives of the 
people of these nations. ‘Tell of the great Emperor Ti- 
berius in Rome, of the great city with its wonderful 
buildings and crowds of people. Then ask the pupils: to 
pretend that they are a Jew from Rome or from a Greek 
city in the crowd in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost— ~ 
one of those who heard the disciples speak in their own 
language. Pretend that this man—suppose that his name 
is Julius—returns home, to his family. What would he 
tellthem? Let the pupils decide whether he had believed 
Peter’s sermon, or whether he had just considered it a 
curiously interesting meeting of religious fanatics. 

If your pupils are interested in modern missions, tell 
the story of the wonderful spread of Christianity in 
Korea, where there were no Protestant Christians in 1885, 
and in 1914, shortly before Dr. Underwood’s death, there 
were twenty-four thousand adherents to the Church. 
You will find “ Underwood of Korea,” the life of Horace 
Underwood, by his wife, very interesting in this 
connection. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: T'o show how 
the coming of the Holy Spirit changed the lives of the 
early followers of Jesus. To show how the coming of 
Christ in the heart nowadays changes the lives of men. 

Read the life of Frank Higgins, the sky pilot of the 
lumberjacks, by Thomas D. Whittles. Many of these 
rough men were made Christians by the influence of this 


xliv 


LO, tr bel RAGHER xlv 


preacher ; tell his story in more detail, if the book is avail- 
able. Show how the lives of the heathen of China or of 
Korea have been changed by the love of Christ. Impress 
the fact that the true follower of Christ is different from 
what he was before he began to love Jesus. Ask them if 
they have felt any such changes in their own lives. Try 
to lead them to a heartfelt desire to be as brave for 
Christ as the apostles were, to be truly courageous for his 
sake in every way they can. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To lead the 
pupils to express their opinions about the lives of the fol- 
lowers of Jesus and to express the feeling aroused that 
they should do likewise. 

Perhaps the topics for discussion seem somewhat diffi- 
cult, but references to your Boards of Home and Foreign 
Missions will bring you leaflets that you can use with 
many lessons in this course. As missionary doctors, the 
names of Dr. Grenfell and Dr. Arthur Jackson maybe 
mentioned. 


Cuapter XXIII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To help the 
pupils to see their duty in helping foreign children in our 
midst to feel at home. 

Stories which you may use in connection with this les- 
son may be found in Margaret T. Applegarth’s “ Primary 
Missionary Stories,” and in the leaflets published by the 
Home Mission Board of the Church. The question of the 
immigrant is one of the most important questions of the 
day. We must try to Americanize the new comers, to 
inspire them with our American ideals, or we shall find 
that foreign ideals are taking their place—that the term 
“American ” has changed its meaning. 

Teach some of the missionary songs in connection with 
this lesson, Margaret Coote Brown’s “The World 
Children for Jesus,” found in ‘ Carols,” or “ Jesus Loves 
the Little Children,” found in “ Beginners and Primary 
Songs,” or “Go Ye,’ found in “ Junior Hymns and 
Carols.” 


xlvi TOS THEWLRA CH Bk 


Booxs THat DEAL WITH THE IMMIGRANT QUESTION 


“From Alien to Citizen,’ by Edmund A. Steiner. 
“The Immigrant Tide,” by Edmund A. Steiner. 
“Immigrants and Their Children,” by Jane Addams. 

“ A Schoolmaster of.the Great City,” by Angelo Patri. 

‘Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show the 
pupils the beauty of Stephen’s character and his likeness 
to Jesus; to fill them with a desire to be like him in their 
lives, even if they are not called upon to be like him in 
suffering martyrdom. 

Make a comparison between the trial of Stephen and 
that of Christ. This will serve as a review. 

What was the accusation against Christ? Against 
Stephen? 

How were the witnesses obtained against Christ? 
Against Stephen? 

Before what body of men was Christ tried? Stephen? 

Christ was tried by the Roman governor. Stephen 
was not. Can anyone tell why? (Probably because the 
Jews were in such a rebellious state that they no longer 
cared for Roman authority.) 

What were Christ’s last words? Stephen’s? 

Such a comparison can be made to lead to a very inter- 
esting discussion. Bring it down to modern times. If 
possible read the life of some modern missionary who was 
martyred and tell the story briefly. The story of the 
Boxer massacre will be found in “ China’s Book of Mar- 
tyrs,” by Miner. 

An interesting point to bring up in this connection is 
the fact that the United States, acting in truly Christian 
spirit, has used the interest on the Boxer indemnity 
money in giving Christian education to Chinese students. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To lead the 
pupils to express their love for Christ and their willing- 
ness to serve him as Stephen and the other deacons did. 
To prepare for serving him in big ways by serving faith- 
fully in little ways. 

Remind the pupils of Jesus’ parables of the talents and 
of the pounds. He that is faithful in little things is pre- 
pared when the need for faithfulness in great things 


POST HE | LEACHER xlvii 


comes. Lead them to the thought that though they are 
only children now, they are preparing to do great things 
when they are older. They are getting ready for life. If 
they do the little things faithfully, as Stephen did his duty 
as a deacon, they will, with God’s help, be prepared for 
great things, as he was. 


CHAPTER XXIV 


Week Day Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To show how 
the early followers of Jesus obeyed his command to 
preach the gospel, and how those who were taught were 
prepared to learn. 

Have one of the pupils read the reference to Philip, 
usually called Philip the deacon, or Philip the evangelist, 
given in Acts 6:5. Point out the fact that he is not at all 
the same man as Philip the apostle. Read what is said 
about him in Acts 21:8, 9. 

If possible have a map of Africa and point out Ethiopia 
upon it. Show how the gospel good tidings was spread- 
ing and tell something of the Early. Church in Africa. 
Christianity was strong in northern Africa during the 
first centuries, and we shall find out later that Augustine, 
one of the greatest of the Early Church Fathers, was a 
native of Africa. 

Perhaps you may be interested in eile the pupils 
about the modern missionary work in Africa. Most in- 
teresting information may be obtained from the Woman’s 
Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church, 
U. S. A., and also an African village, to be colored and 
set up in the sand table. (Price, 60 cents. This can also 
be obtained from the Milton Bradley Co., Springfield, 
Massachusetts. ) 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show how 
later followers of Jesus have carried out his command to 
preach and teach; to show how God has prepared those 
who learn, to receive the good tidings. 

The story of Murata has been chosen for this lesson 
because of certain similarities to the story of the Ethi- 
opian. Both men were students of the Bible before a 
Christian teacher reached them. Both were “ good soil ” 


xlviii TLOPDHEVDRAGHER: 


in which the seed might be sown. Both were men of high 
rank and influence in their own countries. The facts 
about Murata are taken from Griffis’ “ Verbeck of 
apelin 

You can make the story more interesting by talking 
about Japan, for the ptipils will be able to tell you much 
about the flowery kingdom. ‘Then, when they have talked 
about the beauty of the land, the cleverness of the people, 
and so on, ask what is lacking—seventy-five years ago 
they did not know Christ at all; now they know more 
about him, but there is still much to be done. These 
people who are so many of them rich, intellectual, so very 
clever and nimble with their fingers should be made 
Christian, so that all these good qualities may be used in 
Christ’s service. Practical ways of helping can be 
brought out. 

Expressional Session. The ‘T‘eacher’s Aim: To lead the 
pupils to an expression of their interest in missions. 

If the members of your class enjoy singing, this might 
be made a song service. There are so many stirring mis- 
sionary songs that it is hard to choose among them. 
Possibly you might have a member of the class, dressed 
in Japanese costume, sing some of the little Japanese 
lullabies, which can be obtained from the Woman’s 
Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church, 
U. S. A. Perhaps you may find it possible to have an 
exhibition of Japanese curios, and if the pupils them- 
selves can supply them, and talk about them, you will 
give them an opportunity for expression that will be 
valuable to them. 


CHAPTER X XV 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: Tio show the 
pupils that God loves everyone in the world; that Jesus 
was sent not only to save the Jews, but the people of all 
nations. 

The necessity for these lessons on kindness to the for- 
eign children in our midst is brought home to us by the 
statistics of the Home Mission Board, which show that 
about one third of the population of the United States 


TO THE TEACHER xlix 


consists of the foreign-born and their children. If many 
of your pupils are of foreign birth, they, too, need the 
lesson, though from another angle. Show them how wel- 
come they are; show them what true Christian American- 
ization means. ‘The little exercise on page 214 may be used 
in connection with this series of lessons. 

Sunday Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To continue the 
teaching begun in the Week Day Session. 

This is the fourth sermon of Peter about which we have 
studied, (1) beginning with that at Pentecost; (2) at the 
time of the healing of the lame man; (3) before the coun- 
cil. As you think over these sermons you see that they 
are wonderful sermons for a man such as Peter to preach, 
and were directly inspired by the Holy Spirit, and filled 
with love for God and man. Peter reached the hearts of 
those who listened to him. ‘Try to reach the hearts of 
those who listen to you, and to inspire them with a love 
for others, and to show that love, for Jesus’ sake, by being 
kind to those who are different from yourselves. It is 
also a necessary lesson for your pupils to learn that those 
who are different are not necessarily inferior. They may 
know many things that your pupils do not know, though 
these things are different. 

Expressional Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To lead the 
pupils to express their desire to be kind to others, and to 
show by their example what Christian children should be. 

If you have not already used the exercise given on page 
214, use it at this expressional meeting of the class. 


CHAPTER XXVI 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To give to 
the pupils the facts about the early life of Saul, his educa- 
tion and conversion. 

A map showing Asia Minor, Palestine, and Europe will 
be necessary in connection with the three lessons which 
we have about Paul. Have one of the pupils draw the 
outline of such a map on the blackboard. ‘Then, as vari- 
ous places are mentioned call for volunteers to locate 
them on the map. For instance, ‘Tarsus, Jerusalem, and 
Damascus are mentioned in the week-day lesson. Have 


I TOVIHEVIEAGIIER 


the route of the journey from Jerusalem to Damascus 
traced. 

If possible show pictures of Damascus, which may be 
obtained from Underwood and Underwood, New York. 
Have the pupils tell facts about it. It is one of the oldest 
cities in the world. Ask them to see if they can find a 
reference to it in Genesis. The first is in Genesis 14:15. 

Then bring the lesson to the actual conversion of Saul. 
Have the three accounts read by the pupils. If they 
note the variation between Acts 9:7 and Acts 22:9, as 
they may do, say that there is no contradiction here in the 
Greek in which the book of The Acts was first written. 
The men heard a voice, but only Saul knew what the 
voice said. 

Go back to the appearances of Jesus before the ascen- 
sion. ‘This time he appeared to Saul, who became the last 
of those whom he sent out in person. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher's Aim: To show the 
beginnings of Christian missions. ‘To lead the pupils to a 
desire to help in spreading the gospel. 

Ask where the followers of Jesus were first called 
“ Christians.” What is the meaning of the name? What 
do the pupils know about Antioch? Many interesting 
facts can be found in David Smith’s “The Life and 
Letters of St. Paul.” The people of Antioch were wicked 
and they were heathen, but they did a very wonderful 
thing. They sent out the first Christian missionaries 
on a regular missionary journey. Who were these mis- 
sionaries? Where did they go? (Have the journey 
traced, using the map begun in the Week Day Session.) 
Bring out the expression on the part of the pupils that it 
is our duty to support missions. If the very early Chris- 
tians were so eager to tell others about Jesus, should not 
we also be eager and anxious to do so? We know much 
more of the value of Christianity than they did. We 
know much better than they did what changes it makes in 
people and in nations. We should help on Christian 
missions in every possible way—by prayers, by offerings, 
by kindness to those who do not know Christ, by living 
as Christians should live, every day. Compare India and 
America, for instance, as examples of what Christianity 


NOs oe hes GIL R li 


can do. Hospitals are Christian; care for little children, 
especially for girls; kindness to women, all are Christian. 
Many examples of this may be given. 

Junior books about Paul are: “Saint Paul the Hero,” 
by Rufus Jones; and “Paul the Dauntless,’ by Basil 
Mathews. 

Expressional Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To lead 
the pupils to an expression of their thankfulness to God 
for his loving-kindness to them, and for the blessings 
which they enjoy, and to a desire to help to give these 
blessings to others. Lead them to give the credit for 
their blessings to God, who has blessed them by giving 
them good parents and teachers, in a wonderful country, 
which is rich in every good gift, and where there is to be 
found the greatest opportunity in all the world. Let them 
use all these things to show forth the glory of God. Let 
them give to him the praise. 


CHAPTER XX VII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘Tio show 
how great changes in the life belief in Jesus makes. 

Show the pupils what a different man Paul the mis- 
sionary was from Saul the persecutor. Show, also, how 
different the jailer was before and after his conversion. 
We know that there was much good in Paul. He said in 
the latter part of his life that he had always a clear 
conscience, void of offense toward man and toward God. 
About the jailer’s early life we know nothing, but men 
who held positions of this sort under the Roman Govern- 
ment were accustomed to all sorts of cruelty and harsh- 
ness. His change of attitude and his kindness toward 
his prisoners showed a complete change of heart. 

Bring out the fact that Lydia was hospitable, and that 
hospitality is a virtue that Christians should cultivate. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To continue 
to impress the aim of the Week Day Session. ‘To arouse 
in the pupils a desire to show similar changes in their 
own lives. 

The story of Afrikaner may be found more fully told 
in “ Missionary Labors and Scenes in Southern Africa ” 
and in “ The Lives of Robert and Mary Moffat” by John 


lii TO THES TRACHIER 


Moffat. Have a map of Africa to use with this lesson. 
Go back to Chapter XXIV, the story of Philip and the 
Ethiopian. Use again the African village suggested in 
connection with that lesson. Show how quickly the hut 
might have been made for the missionary by the women. 

Expressional Session. The ‘Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show 
how the gospel of Jesus can change the lives of those who 
believe in it, and to lead the pupils to a desire to make 
changes in their own lives which show that they are fol- 
lowers of Christ. 

The pupils have seen in the lives of others the changes 
which the gospel made in the lives of Paul, of the jailer, 
and of Afrikaner. Lead them to express a desire to make 
changes in their own lives, to be each day a little bit 
more what Christ would want them to be. Ask them to 
try this week to give up some unkind thought or unchris- 
tian habit. Perhaps they can be kind to some one who 
needs kindness. A stranger in their school will give them 
a chance to show the virtue of hospitality. Ask them 
to be sure to do some kind act for Jesus’ sake, this week. 


CHAPTER XXVIII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To give 
the pupils the facts concerning Paul’s journey to Rome, 
and the shipwreck of the vessel on which he sailed. 

Have drawn on the blackboard before the class ses- 
sion a large outline map of the Mediterranean Sea, with- 
out any names. Then have a quick map drill. Ask for 
volunteers to answer questions such as the following: 

What was the starting point of Paul’s voyage? 
(Czesarea) Locate this on the map. 

What place did they reach on the second day of the 
journey? (Sidon. Locate this. Have a dotted line 
drawn from Cesarea to Sidon.) 

Where did the vessel go next? 

At what island did Paul wish to spend the winter? 
Where did they plan to go, on the captain’s advice? 

In this way go through Acts, chapter 27, and locate all 
the places named, connecting those at which the vessel 
touched with dotted lines. If necessary use almost the 
entire period for this map drill. ‘Then have the entire 


TO THE TEACHER liii 


chapter read aloud by some one in the class who reads 
well, asking the children in this way to fix firmly in mind 
the places and the events which occurred in each. 

Sunday Session. ‘The ‘Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show how 
Paul won the hearts of strangers and to teach the lesson 
that in the same way we may win the hearts of others. 

During the voyage Paul had won the heart of the 
centurion, so that for the missionary’s sake Julius had 
spared the lives of all the prisoners, Acts 27:43. On the 
island he won the heart of the governor, by curing the 
illness of his father, Acts 28:8, and of the other inhab- 
itants by aiding their friends, verse 9, with a result that 
the entire party was treated hospitably and supplied with 
the things needed for continuing their journey. Moffat 
and Williams, too, acted in such a way that they won the 
hearts of strangers. Inspire in the pupils the desire to 
do likewise, to act so that others at once love and admire 
them and to return kindness to others. There is a little 
song which says “Has some one a kindness shown? 
Pass it on!” Many kindnesses have been shown to our 
pupils. They should pass them on, and the blessings 
will return to them multiplied many times. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘T'o lead 
the pupils to see that there is joy in serving others, that 
it is their duty to be happy and cheerful, to show that 
the religion of Jesus is a religion of joy. 

During the war with Germany a lifeboat from a ves- 
sel which had been sunk by a submarine was brought to 
land at an American coast resort. In it there were men 
and women, and one little girl, of Junior age. The mem- 
bers of the party had been for several days in an open 
boat; they had had only ship biscuit and a very little 
water as supplies; and when they were brought ashore 
they were exhausted. The little girl, however, had kept 
them all cheered up. She had been the one happy mem- 
ber of the party, though this was not purposely but 
through ignorance. Use this story to show how even 
a child may cheer those who are in trouble. Not many 
of our Juniors will have to live through such an experi- 
ence, but they can serve others gladly and happily in 
their own spheres. 


liv TO THE TEACHER 
CHAPTER X XIX 


Week Day Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: To give to 
the pupils information concerning the life and work of 
Polycarp, the leader of the church established in Smyrna, 
shortly after the death of Christ. 


Look up the accounts of Smyrna given in the encyclo- 
pedia, and try to gain a background of history for the les- 
son. The facts about Polycarp and his martyrdom are 
taken trom the following volumes: “ Lives of the Lead- 
ers of Our Church Universal,” by MacCracken; “A His- 
tory of the Christian Church,” by Walker; “ Conflict of 
Christianity with Heathenism,”’ by Uhlhorn. The ac- 
count of Smyrna is found in “ New Archeological Dis- 
coveries,’ by Cobern. 


Sunday Session. The T'eacher’s Aim: ’T'o continue the 
teaching begun in the Week Day Session about Polycarp 
and his work, emphasizing particularly his faithfulness 
and trying to touch the pupils with a desire also to be 
faithful. 


In connection with this story there has been given in 
the pupil’s lesson an abridgment of the story ‘“ The 
Christians to the Lions,” by George A. Henty, which may 
be found complete in the volume “The Way of the 
King’s Gardens,” in “The King’s Highway Series,” by 
Sneath, Hodges, and Tweedy. You may also find it 
possible to use in connection with this lesson the picture 
Diana or Christ, by Long, which shows the maiden Ennia 
urged by the attendants of Diana to renounce her faith. 
This may be obtained from the Wilde Picture Company, 
in the one and one-half cent size, and one copy may be 


given to each pupil. 


Expressional Session. The eacher’s Aim: ‘To lead 
the pupils to a desire to be faithful to God the Father 
and to Jesus Christ, his Son and our Saviour. 


The story given on page 264 of the pupil’s book may 


TORI at PCE ER lv 


be used with the Expressional Session, if it has not been 
used with the Sunday Session. Refer the pupils to ency- 
clopedia articles on the various characters mentioned in 
the lesson, if they are able to do more completely ex- 
pressional work than simply the reading of the brief 
paragraphs in their books. Many nine-year-old children, 
even, will be able to do work of this sort. In the case of 
country schools, sometimes libraries are not available, 
but by having a few good books at hand, which you can 
pass around, you can help the pupils greatly. Perhaps 
there is a “ Book of Knowledge” belonging to one of 
the pupils of your class, or the volumes of “The King’s 
Highway Series.” A good history of missions may be 
available, and will be most useful with this course. ‘The 
MacCracken book, mentioned in connection with the 
Week Day Session, is an old volume, but it is very valua- 
ble. 


CHAPTER XXX 


Week Day Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To give to 
the pupils the main facts of the early life of Augustine. 

This lesson seems rather negative than positive in its 
teachings. It should be used to show the pupils rather 
what not to do than what to do, in their childhood. ‘The 
facts should be taught as a background for Sunday’s 
lesson, which emphasizes the difference made in the life 
of Augustine by his conversion to Christianity. 

Have the pupils tell anything that they may know 
about Carthage from their study of history in day school. 
If you tell them that the Phcenicians came from Carthage 
they will probably be able to give you more information. 
Remind them that King Hiram of Phoenicia helped King 
Solomon when he was building the Temple. ‘The Phee- 
nicians or Carthaginians were an ancient people, noted 
from the earliest times for their venturesomeness on the 
sea. If the pupils have studied about the history of 
Rome, they may remember the story of A‘neas and the 
tale given in the A‘neid of the founding of Carthage. 
If they are familiar with the Punic Wars, let them tell 


lvi TOMPH HubnAG EH RR 


something of these. ‘Then ask how they think that the 
gospel was carried to Carthage. Use the map in this con- 
nection. Remind the class that even on the Day of Pente- 
cost, there were present in Jerusalem Jews from Libya 
about Cyrene, and from Crete, Acts 2:10, 11, which are 
not very far from Carthage. Paul wanted to preach in 
Spain, Romans 15:24, 25, which is even farther, and was 
shipwrecked on Malta, which is quite near Africa. Chris- 
tianity spread rapidly, and North Africa, before it was 
conquered by the Moors, was the center of much of the 
Christianity of the world. We often forget this and con- 
sider that it was always a heathen country. 

Sunday Session. ‘The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To conclude 
the teaching of the facts about Augustine, and to lead the 
children to desire to follow Christ from their youth, and 
not to wait to become Christians until they have become 
such slaves to sin that they have to struggle as Augustine 
struggled. Begin the session by reading the lesson text 
assigned for both the Sunday and the Week Day Ses- 
sions, Luke 15:11-24. Ask what lesson Jesus meant to 
teach when he gave this parable to his disciples. He 
meant to show that God loves and grieves for even sinful 
people as the father in the parable loved and grieved for 
his younger son. Then ask who, in the lesson to-day, was 
like the prodigal. Who was like the prodigal’s father in 
love and care for her wicked son? Emphasize Monica’s 
love for Augustine, and ask the pupils whether they 
would prefer to have Christian parents like Monica, or 
heathen parents like Patricius. Patricius was easy-going. 
He let his son do as he liked, and he went very far on the 
way to destruction. Like the prodigal son he returned 
to his senses before it was too late. He brought joy to 
his mother’s heart as the prodigal son brought joy to 
his father’s heart and as the return of a repentant sinner 
brings joy to God. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘T'o lead 
the pupils to an expression of their desire to serve God 
always. Assign beforehand the various questions and 
topics, giving to the youngest pupils the verses to find 
and read and recite. It might be well to call for vol- 
unteers for the various topics. Offer to help, if help is 


LOS LH 7 bEACH ER Ivii 


necessary, but try to give the pupils opportunity to work 
for themselves. 


CHAPTER XX XI 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To give to 
the pupils in simple terms the main facts of the life of 
Bernard of Clairvaux. 

Picture for the pupils the life of the eleventh century. 
Show them how different it was from the life of the 
present day. Describe the knights who went into the 
Crusades. Perhaps you will have time to read some of 
the descriptions found in “ Ivanhoe,” or “ The Talisman ” 
by Sir Walter Scott. Try to make as vivid as possible 
the joys which the men of that period felt in deeds of 
knightly valor. Then bring out the fact that Bernard 
gave up all these things. He went into a monastery. 
He lived a life of self-denial. He even starved himself 
into. ill health, Why? Because he loved God better 
than the pleasures of the world, and gave them up be- 
cause he thought that it was God’s will. Bring out this 
point strongly. Bernard was God’s man. He did what 
he thought God wanted him to do. 

Then show that life in a monastery was a life of giv- 
ing. Emphasize the story of how Bernard and his fol- 
lowers fed the starving. Be sure to bring this lesson 
into the pupils’ lives by having them bring their offer- 
ings for some of the starving children of whom we read 
so much, in the Near East, in India, in China. Plan to 
have this offering made on Sunday. If things are given 
rather than money, you may want to have them packed 
for sending them away during the next Week Day Ses- 
sion. 


BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX 


“The greatness of Bernard lay not in the qualities of 
his intellect, but of his character....He displays a no- 
bility of nature, a wise charity, and tenderness in his 
dealings with others, and a genuine humility, with no 
touch of servility, that made him one of the most com- 


Ivili DOP TEES DA GH Hk 


plete exponents of the Christian life. His broadly Chris- 
tian character is, indeed, witnessed to by the enduring 
quality of his influence....The reformers saw in him a 
medieval champion of their favorite doctrine of the 
supremacy of divine grace; his works, down to the pres- 
ent day, have been reprinted in countless editions. ‘This 
is perhaps due to the fact that the chief fountain of his 
own inspiration was the Bible. He was saturated in its 
language and in its spirit.’—The Encyclopedia Brit- 
tanica. 


Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To continue 
the teaching of the life of Bernard and to awaken in 
the pupils a desire to dedicate themselves as completely 
to God as he did. 


Bernard’s literary works were very numerous. He 
wrote letters, biographies, treatises, and so on, as well 
as hymns. The authorship of the hymns generally at- 
tributed to him is, after the lapse of nearly a thousand 
years, sometimes questioned, but conservative authori- 
ties attribute to him the three given in our lessons. It 
will be interesting to have one or more of the members 
of the class who are able to illumine, put on the black- 
board the hymns attributed to Bernard. Use colored 
crayons and fancy lettering. 

The pupils will enjoy singing the songs, too, though 
they are rather mystical in tone. Be sure to impress 
the fact that the songs were not originally written in 
English, but in Latin, and that the words which we 
have were parts of very long hymns. The tunes of the 
three given may be found in “ The Hymnal.” 


Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show 
the pupils the importance of laying a good foundation 
for their lives, and to bring out the fact that God wants 
them to think about following him in the calling of 
ministers and missionaries, though they can follow him 
in other ways, too. 


Ask the pupils to suggest occupations that they might 
take up when they are grown. Make a list of those 
mentioned, on the blackboard. Perhaps you will have 
a list something like this: 


TORLH EST ERACHER lix 


_ Boys Girls 
Doctor Stenographer 
Lawyer Clerk 
Extchitect Housekeeper 
Carpenter Teacher 
Preacher Missionary 
Railroad Man. Doctor. 


Then ask how the pupils can best prepare themselves 
for such positions as those mentioned. Show them that 
even if they do not know definitely what they will 
choose to do with their lives in the future, the best way 
to prepare for any calling is to follow God’s will, to 
work hard, to play hard, to study well, to keep their 
bodies clean and strong, and their minds alert. Then 
whatever they do in the future, they will be laying a 
good foundation for their lives. 


CHAPTER) XXX IT 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To teach 
the pupils the main facts of Luther’s life. 

The figure of Luther is the most important of the four 
about whom we are teaching in our study of Church 
history. There is much material available both in the 
line of biography and of criticism. If possible obtain 
for your pupils small copies of the picture of Luther, 
Perry Pictures Company, number 785. Begin the les- 
son with a comparison of Bernard and Luther, showing 
how the Church had changed in the period between 
them. Show the picture of Luther in the Schonberg- 
Cotta family, given in the pupil’s book, and read from 
that old classic, if it is available. The account of Luther 
given in “Lives of the Leaders of Our Church Uni- 
versal,’ by MacCracken, and also in “A History of the 
Christian Church,” by Walker, are most interesting. 
Both of these books were referred to in connection with 
the lesson on Polycarp. The pupils have been asked, 
too, to put on the blackboard the hymn, “A Mighty 
Fortress Is Our God.” You might also have them write 


Ix TOSTH BAD H A GH ER 


the words of the hymn “ All Praise to Thee, 1 Eternal 
Lord,’ which also was written by Luther. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue 
the teaching about Luther begun in the Week Day Ses- 
sion. ‘To bring out the importance of his work in be- 
einning the Protestant Reformation. 

Perhaps you might have a dramatization of the scene 
of the burning of the pope’s decree, or “bull.” Show 
how brave this was in Luther, and how he stood firm 
for what his conscience told him was right. Bring out 
the teaching that conscience is a great force—the voice 
of God within us, which we should obey. Have the 
pupils sing again the two hymns of Luther which are 
mentioned above, “ A Mighty Fortress,” and “ All Praise 
to Thee, Eternal Lord.” 

As handwork with this lesson you may provide the 
pupils with paper, and have them formulate a decree 
such as they think the pope issued against Luther. Sup- 
ply them with round, red seals, such as are used with 
legal documents. Then have them write a decree. 
se One decree that Martin Luther, who has 
rebelled against the Church, shall confess that he is 
wrong, within sixty days. If he does not do this he shall 
be excommunicated and put out of the Church. Every 
true Church member will refuse to give him food or 
lodgings, and he will be driven from every Christian 
city.” Let this be made to look as legal as possible. Of 
course this was not the form of the decree, but it will 
impress upon the pupils how brave he was in daring the 
anger of the Church. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To lead 
the pupils to an expression of the desire to obey the voice 
of conscience as Luther did; to teach that it is one of 
the most valuable guides to right-doing with which God 
nas provided human beings. 

Have the pupils themselves read at this session the 
various stories given in connection with the lesson. Try 
to lead them to a discussion of the four men about whom 
they have studied under the theme, “ Followers of Jesus 
and the History of the Church.” Bring out the fact that 
all of them obeyed the voice of conscience. 





AG yr Vee Ae ry Ixi 


Polycarp, in his courage at the stake, Augustine, in his 
decision in the garden, Bernard, in his consecration, and 
Luther, in his boldness in his fight against what he knew 
was wrong, were all obeying the voice of God in their 
hearts. Then introduce the new theme of our lessons, 
“Later Followers of the Lord Jesus.” The voice of 
conscience is still strong in God’s followers. We are 
going to study next about the missionaries who go out 
into the world to preach and teach about God and Jesus 
Christ to those who do not know about them. They are 
obeying the voice of God in their hearts. Ask the pupils 
in preparation for the next theme to collect pictures of 
India, China, Africa, and other foreign countries. 


CHAPTER XX XIII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To give to 
the pupils the main facts about the life of William Carey, 
the father of modern missions. 

Have the pupils put on the blackboard an outline map 
of Asia to be used in connection with the missionary 
lessons dealing with India, China, and Burma. Ask them 
to collect during the week for use in the Expressional 
Session all pictures of India, curios, and idols that they 
can find. Tell them to keep their eyes open at the same 
time for materials of the same sort from China, the South 
Seas, and Africa, as these will be used later in the course. 
The Leader’s Handbook for the mission-study book, “Un- 
der Many Flags,” issued by the Missionary Education 
Movement, New York City (15 cents) gives many hints 
for a Junior course on missions, as does also “‘ Helps,” by 
Gertrude Bigelow, which is issued by the Central Com- 
mittee on the United Study of Foreign Missions (M. H. 
Leavis, West Medford, Massachusetts,) to be used in 
connection with the Junior mission-study book, “A 
Noble Army,” by Ethel Daniels Hubbard. ‘The former 
book suggests an “ Opportunity Corner,’ designed for 
early comers as follows: 

“Arrange a table and several chairs near a window 
Fach week have two boxes on the table. One labeled 


Ixil LOST EY bis CHIL: 


‘Something to Do,’ will contain paste, scissors, pictures, 
and so on, and the other marked ‘Something to Read,’ 
will contain magazines and books. ‘The first week only 
a very few books, pictures, and magazines will be availa- 
ble, but as the joy in the “ Opportunity Corner” grows, 
many new surprises may be added for each session of 
the society. One leader secured as many children’s mis- 
sionary books as there were members of the class. ‘They 
had a circulating library. Each book could be kept only 
one week. A committee may be appointed to supply 
and arrange materials in the boxes. There always should 
be if possible a map of the country to be studied that 
day. 

“Local conditions will determine the direction and ex- 
tent of the development of this plan. Most children need 
the opportunity to browse around amid missionary litera- 
ture, pictures, curios, and so on, and to have opportunity 
really to make articles which may be of use to others. 
They have but little chance to see or to do anything of 
the kind in their homes. Various groups may take turns 
in the use of the corner, or a table may be arranged for 
each group.” 

The same book suggests a “ Service Box,” to be sent 
out to mission workers, and gives a list of possible 
articles for such a box as follows: 


Educational 


Scrapbooks of American life for classes in geography and 
history 

Bible and educational games for social evenings and Sunday 
afternoons 

Perry, and other educational pictures for kindergartens 

Pencils, crayons, and paints 


Evangelistic 


Collect money to provide portions of the Bible and tracts for 
colporteur work 

Bible pictures large and small 

Copies of Moulton’s Modern Readers Bible, 
(Children’s Series) Published by Macmillan Company, 
New York, 2 vols. Price: 90 cents each 


LOS TIE ACHE R Ixiii 


Industrial 


Cloth for dresses and underwear 

Bits of colored worsted to be used by girls in China as hair 
ribbons 

Raffa for baskets 

Beads for chains 

Jigsaws and tools 

One denomination is sending nasturtium seeds to China be- 
cause plants and flowers will grow in that climate, but 
seeds will not mature. 

All kinds of flower seeds 

One denomination has inaugurated “Thread Day” and asks 
the children for 10,000 spools of thread. This thread is 
forwarded to a lace factory at one of their India missions. 


Medical 


Hemstitched tray cloths for hospitals 

Dolls simply dressed, for children’s wards in hospitals 
Picture books 

Red Cross supplies (send for printed list) 


Any or all these activities may be possible for your 
class. If you can have a bit of Indian lace to show 
your pupils, and then make the suggestion that the chil- 
dren supply spools of thread for the making of such lace, 
you will find them interested at once. 

There are many missionary books which may be used 
in connection with this study of missions; Among them 
are Margaret T. Applegarth’s “Junior Missionary 
Stories,” and “ Friday’s Footprints,’ and Ethel Daniels 
Hubbard’s “ A Noble Army.” In “ Friday’s Footprints,” 
there are charming stories of Indian life and need. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show the 
pupils how they can help to give the Bible to the world. 
Use the devices suggested for the Week Day Session. 
Suggest that the children’s offering be devoted to the 
work of the colporteurs who are distributing the Word 
of God through far-distant parts of the world. Tell of 
their adventures. You may obtain material from the 
Bible House, Astor Place, New York. This material may 
be used in connection with later lessons in the course, 
also. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To obtain 
from the pupils an expression of their interest in mis- 


Ixvi TROVE DAC rn Ts 


count of “The Bible that Was Hidden in a Pillow,” 
‘given in “ Lamplighters Across the Sea” by Margaret 
Applegarth, also gives an interesting story of Judson 
and his Bible. 

If possible, read the account of Burma given in an en- 
cyclopedia, to get the ‘atmosphere of this land which is 
so different from even the near-by countries with which 
we are now more or less familiar. Read Kipling’s 
familiar “ Mandalay,” with its lines: 


Elephints a-pilin’ teak 

In the sludgy, squdgy creek, 

Where the silence ‘ung that ’eavy you was 
Was ’arf afraid to speak! 


On the road to Mandalay— 

Where the old flotilla lay: 

Can’t you ’ear their paddles chunkin’ from 
Rangoon to Mandalay? 

On the road to Mandalay, 

Where the flyin’ fishes play, 

An’ the dawn comes up like thunder outer 
China ’crost the Bay! 


Then picture the young couple coming from New Eng- 
land to this strange place, and tell the story as vividly as 
possible, using one of the books previously referred to, 
if this is available. It would be interesting to have a 
small idol of Buddha to show in connection with those 
missionary lessons that deal with lands where the wor- 
ship of Buddha is practiced. At least you can find its 
picture. 

Have a brief map drill and review. William Carey 
taught in India, Robert Morrison in China, Adoniram 
Judson in Burma. Show that the people of all these 
lands worshiped Buddha, that all these missionaries 
found that almost the first step which it was necessary 
for them to take was the translation of the Bible into 
the native language. 

Drill on the Memory Hymn, “ From Greenland’s Icy 
Mountains,” and talk about the places mentioned in the 
hymn. 

A pageant called “ The Heroine Ava,” by Helen L. 


TO THE TRACHER Ixvii 


Willcox has been prepared by the Missionary Education 
Movement. ‘This may be too old for Juniors, but parts 
of it may be used. It might prove interesting to have 
your pupils work out for themselves the incident of the 
appearance of the missionaries before the king, quoted 
on page 335. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To appeal to 
the pupils’ interest in giving the Bible to the whole 
world. ‘Tell them that each year the Bible is being trans- 
lated into more and more languages until in 1922, the 
statistics are as follows: The complete Bible into one 
hundred and fifty languages; the New ‘Testament into 
one hundred and thirty-one; parts of the Bible into four 
hundred and twenty-eight more. 

Go into the subject of the work of the Bible Societies. 
For this you may obtain information from the American 
Bible Society, Bible House, Astor Place, New York. ‘Ten 
cents will bring to you the following pamphlets: 


“The Manual of the American Bible Society,’ “ Where and 
How the Bible Goes,” “ Facts and Achievements of the Century,” 
and “Some Surprises.” “The Story of the Arabic Bible” may 
be had for two cents. For distribution to pupils ten copies of 
the following leaflet may be had from the American Bible 
Society for ten cents: ‘“‘ How the Bible Is Distributed.” It has a 
verse of the Bible in eighty-nine languages. 


Tell of the work done in distributing Bibles to the 
soldiers during the War. Show how the Word of God 
is being taken to every corner of the earth, and rouse the 
pupils’ interest in the work. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To lead 
the pupils to an expression of a desire to help on the 
work of Christ, and to endure hardships as Christian 
soldiers, for Jesus’ sake, if this is necessary in carrying 
out his work. 

Keep up the interest in the mission box which you are 
planning. See that the children do something for it. 
Ask them to try this week to earn money for something 
to put in the box. They cannot endure great hardships, 
but ask them to deny themselves candy or the “ movies,” 
or some other treat, so that they may give the money to 


Ixvili TOrLH bar hACH ER 


missions. Look over the suggestions for service given 
with Chapter XX XIII, and apply them to this lesson. 


CHAPTER XXXVI 


Week Day Session.” The Teacher’s Aim: To give to 
the pupils the facts of the way in which some of the 
Indians of the West sought to learn of the true God, and 
to show how necessary is a translation of the Bible. 

Obtain from the pupils themselves any facts which 
they can give in regard to the Louisiana Purchase, and 
the United States as it was in the presidency of Thomas 
Jefferson. ‘They have much of the material in day school. 
Show them that these Nez Percés Indians were a fine 
race of men, eager to know the truth and to follow its 
leadings. 

You can obtain material for the lesson from the Home 
Missions Boards. Much information may be obtained 
from “ Winning the Oregon Country,” by John T. Faris, 
and from the home mission pamphlet, “ The True Story 
of Marcus Whitman,” by Belle M. Brain. 

Lay a good background of knowledge of Indian life 
for this and the following lesson. Have put on the black- 
board a map of North America, with the United States, 
Canada, and Mexico marked. «Then have roughly in- 
dicated the part of the United States which was acquired 
in the Louisiana Purchase. Show approximately the 
Mississippi River, St. Louis, and the home of the Nez 
Percés Indians, near the Columbia River. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To give to the 
pupils the story of Marcus Whitman and to rouse in them 
a desire to help in this work. 

Before the session have put on the board a large out- 
line map of the United States, if you have not had this 
done in the Week Day Session. Have marked Phila- 
delphia, New York, St. Louis. Get from the children the 
facts about the section of our country west of the 
Rockies in 1830 and nowadays. (If you yourself are un- 
certain about these points, look them up.) Compare 
Oregon then and now. Speak of the great agricultural 
and orchard lands which have been developed in this 


LOPPtLy CEACHER Ixix 


section. Make the children realize that even a hundred 
years ago these lands were quite unknown to the white 
man. 

Mark the important points of the journey of the Whit- 
mans and Spaldings on the map. You can find a small 
map in “ The True Story of Marcus Whitman,” referred 
to before, but a large atlas of the United States, such as 
you can consult in a public library, will probably be 
most helpful in this geographic work. Make as dramatic 
as possible the scene where the missionary party crossed 
the Rockies. Perhaps you can have it acted out, using 
blanket, flag, and Bible as suggested, and having two 
girls to represent Mrs. Whitman and Mrs. Spalding, the 
first white women to cross the Rockies; the rest of the 
party is to be represented by boys. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To lead 
the pupils to express themselves in regard to the work of 
Marcus Whitman and other missionaries among the In- 
dians. Have acted out the little dramatization of the 
search of the Indians for the “ Book of heaven,” given 
on, page ‘342. 


CHAPTER XXX VII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To continue 
the story of how the Bible is being given to the world. 

Have the pupils place on the blackboard a large map 
of North America, if this has not already been done in 
connection with the lesson of last week. Compare the 
two sections of the country—that in which Whitman 
taught and that in which Evans taught. Show the dif- 
ference in the kind of work that they did. 

Impress upon the pupils the facts of the biography of 
James Evans. A sketch of his life is given in “ Men Who 
Made Good,” by John I’. Faris. The volume of Egerton 
R. Young which deals with “The Apostle of the North, 
James Evans,” is out of print, but you may be able to ob- 
tain a copy in the public library. There is also an inter- 
esting article on “ The Arctic Prairies,” by Ernest Thomp- 
son-Seton in the Scribner’s Magazine for December, 1910, 
which will give a geographic background. 

Besides the map work in connection with this lesson, 


Ixx TLOSLHE THACHER 


have your younger pupils depict an Indian village on the 
sand table. The pattern of a wigwam is given with the 
pupil’s lesson. Indian curios may be exhibited if it is pos- 
sible to obtain these. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show how 
important it is to give the Bible to men of all nations. 

You yourself will do well to study the chart of the 
alphabet which James Evans invented for the Cree In- 
dians. You will find it possible to make up only the very 
simplest words. The word ‘ Ma-ne-to” (Great Spirit) 
pronounced “ Ma-nee-to,” given in the pupil’s Quarterly, 
will show how this is done. Run down the column headed 
“ Tnitials,” until you come to the “ M” sound. Then run 
your finger across the chart horizontally, until you come 
to the “A” sound. That character will be “Ma.” Do 
the same thing with the other two syllables. If a word 
that you wish to form has a final consonant, add that 
from the last column. You will find, however, that the 
Cree language has only a few sounds, so that there are 
many English words which it will be impossible to form. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show 
the pupils that as it is important for all the world to 
have the Bible, it is important for them to have it, and 
that the best way to do this is to study it and to memorize 
parts of it, so that it becomes their very own possession, 
which no one can take from them. 

Urge the pupils to do carefully the Memory Work as- 
signed during the year. Show them that their memories 
are good at this time of their lives, and that now they 
are able to learn easily “by heart.” Lead them to ex- 
press a desire to make the Bible their own, by learning 
its words, and hiding them in their hearts, so that they 
can say with the psalmist, “ Thy word have I hid in my 
heattes 

Perhaps you would like to have the pupils picture on 
the sand table the scene of James Evans writing out his 
first chart on a piece of birch bark, using a rock as a 
desk. Show how eagerly the Indians learned to read the 
simple symbols, and how happy they were to have the 
Word of God in their own language. 

Have the pupils learn the hymn which was the first put 


{PO RINGG OO AE Ol SU DS xxi 


into Cree, “ Jesus My All, to Heaven Is Gone.” You will 
find this in some hymnals or can adapt to it the tune “ He 
Leadeth Me.” ‘The entire first verse is as follows: 


“Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone, 
He whom I fix my hopes upon; 
His track I see, and I'll pursue 
The narrow way till him I view. 


“The way the holy prophets went, 
The road that leads from banishment, 
The King’s highway of holiness, 
( I’ll go, for all his paths are peace.” 


CuHaptEer XXXVIII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To give the 
main facts of the early part of the life of David Liv- 
ingstone. 

There are numerous books and stories about Liv- 
ingstone which the teacher may use in connection with 
this lesson. Some of those which may be mentioned 
are as follows: 

“ Livingstone, the Pathfinder,” by Basil Mathews. 

“The Personal Life of David Livingstone,” by Blaikie. 

“ Life of David Livingstone,” by Hughes. 

“ Missionary Travels,” by Livingstone. 

“David Livingstone,’ (New Missionary Series), by 
Grace Arthur. 

In connection with this lesson it will be well to put 
on the board a large outline map of Africa. Have the 
places mentioned in the lesson put in, and trace the 
journeys given with this lesson, and the Sunday lesson. 

It will be well to note that Livingstone’s work is di- 
vided into three distinct periods, as follows: (Remember 

that in all this time, though he won national fame as an 
explorer and geographer, he was, first of all, a mission- 
ary.) 1. 1841 to 1856, fifteen years. This included his 
early work as a missionary, when he was sent out first 
by the London Missionary Society. During this time he 
explored as far north as the Zambesi, including his dis- 
covery of Lake ’Ngami, and his great journey across the 
Continent of Africa. 


Ixxii AMG iG bleh sh AM DMC IS@ syed 


2. 1858 to 1864, six years. Explorations of the 
Zambesi River at the head of a government expedition. 
During this time, Lakes Shirwa and Nyassa were dis- 
covered. | 

3. 1866 to 1873, seven years. Explorations under the 
Royal Geographic Society. These centered about Lake 
Tanganyika and the sources of the Kongo. 

Perhaps you can begin your lesson by setting up on 
the sand table an African village. If you used the vil- 
lage mentioned in connection with Chapter XXIV, this 
may be used again. If you do not have this, your pupils 
can make a village, using twigs and bits of wood. Be- 
gin the lesson with the story of how David Livingstone 
came to choose Africa instead of China as his field of 
work. Robert Moffat was in England, speaking of his 
work in Africa. Livingstone talked with him and in the 
talk, Moffat said, “ There is a vast plain in the north, 
where I have sometimes seen, in the morning sun, the 
smoke of a thousand villages, where no missionary has 
ever been.” That was the deciding factor. The smoke of 
a thousand villages roused his imagination, and settled 
his future field of work. “I will go at once to Africa,” 
was Livingstone’s immediate decision. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher's Aim: ‘To complete 
the story of the life of Livingstone. 

Show the purpose of Livingstone’s work in Africa, 
emphasizing the fact that he was not merely a geographer 
—that he considered that his first work was that of a 
missionary. He considered that “the greatest mission- 
ary work he could do would be to open up central Africa 
to Christianity, civilization, and trade. He realized that 
if Africa was to be won for Christ, it must be by estab- 
lishing a chain of mission stations from the coast to the 
far interior, which would become centers of Christian 
influence for all the surrounding regions, where natives 
could be trained and sent out as teachers of their fellows. 
He knew, too, that the slave trade must be put down. ... 
Therefore, instead of remaining in one place, as he had 
done at first, teaching and helping the comparatively 
few he could thus reach, God was now calling him to 
the larger service of missionary exploration.” 


TORT Hiy Wea CHER Ixxiii 


Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘Tio show 
that we who have seen the light of the world should re- 
flect that hight in our daily life. 

It has been suggested that one way of emphasizing 
this lesson pictorially might be the following: 

Have one large candle, such as may be obtained at 
the ten-cent store; twelve ordinary candles; numerous 
small candles, such as are used on birthday cakes. Place 
the larger candle in the center of the sand table. Ar- 
range the twelve smaller candles around it, in a circle, 
and the smallest candles outside. Light the center 
candle, and then from it light the twelve smaller candles 
(the twelve disciples). From these light the small 
candles, representing the followers of Jesus throughout 
the world. So the light was spread since the beginning. 
At first there was only a small circle, but it grew rapidly, 
and now it is our part to reflect the light in our daily 
lives. Draw from the chidren the expression of a desire 
to reflect the light of Christ’s love in what they do each 
day in their association with others. 


CHAPTER X XX LX 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To give the 
main facts of the earlier life of John G. Paton, and to 
impress upon the pupils the way in which missionaries 
give their lives for others. 

This is the last lesson in our series on great mission- 
aries. In this Week Day Session, besides impressing 
upon the pupils the facts of Paton’s early life, see that 
the box which you have been preparing is completed and 
that it is ready to send to the missionary whom your 
class has chosen. 

The life of Paton in the New. Hebrides is full of ad- 
venture similar to that with which boys and girls of 
Junior age are familiar and most interested in their 
secular reading. It is just as interesting as any tale of 
adventure and escapes on cannibal islands, the stories 
which they read with such avidity, and has, besides, the 
advantage of being true. ,Paton’s own biography and 
his life as compiled for Juniors, “The Story of John G. 


‘xxiv TOPE ES LWA CH ik 


Paton Told for Young Folks,’ by James Paton are 
available. The second book mentioned will well repay 
your reading. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To complete 
the pupil’s information about the life of Paton and to 
show that God saved him in almost miraculous ways to 
carry on his work. 

Perhaps, in addition to the Scripture material given 
in the lesson, you will want to use the story of the ways 
in which the Ephesians destroyed their magic books, 
Acts 19:8-20, in comparison with the way in which the 
Aniwans destroyed their idols. To the people of Aniwa 
the digging of the well was as great a miracle as were 
those which Paul performed in Ephesus, and the effect 
was much the same. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To clinch 
the impression of the entire series of missionary lessons, 
and to show that. Jesus Christ, the living Water, is 
needed by all men, everywhere, in order that they may 
have eternal life. 

It may be possible that you would like to have a re- 
view pageant in connection with this last Expressional 
Session in the missionary series. A short, twenty-minute 
“pageant,” called “ Light Bearers,’ was given recently 
in the Missionary Mail; you yourself may prepare a re- 
view by having the pupils dressed to represent the dif- 
ferent nationalities. Give brief sketches of the life and 
work of the various missionaries. Charades and a game 
like twenty questions, based on the various characters of 
the series, may also be used. 


A “ Light Bearer’s ”” Pageant 


A dimly lighted room. To the front, a platform; to 
one side of the platform a blackboard, to the other, the 
leader’s table. Across the platform, in the back, a 
screen. 

The Light Bearers come in from the opposite side of 
the room, singing softly, “I Love to Tell the Story.” 
When the hymn is finished they take their seats, fac- 
ing the platform. : 

Upon the blackboard 1s written in big letters: 


INOVUR SNE this W Ola Dake Ixxv 


LIGHT BEARERS 


The leader points to one letter after another, and as 
she points them out, the children stand up and recite: 


| 
G 
H 


elo 


Spee Aen 


Let your light shine before men; that they may see 
your good works, and glorify your Father who is in 
heaven. | 


Inasmuch as you did it unto one of these my breth- 
ren, even these least, ye did it unto me. 


Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to 
the whole creation. 


How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of 
him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth 
peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that pub- 
lisheth salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy God 
reigneth ! 


The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall 
I fear? ‘The Lord is the strength of my lite; of 
whom shall I be afraid? 


Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest 
not; and a nation that knew not thee shall run unto 
thee, because of the Lord thy God, and for the Holy 
One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee. 


Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in 
heaven, that one of these little ones should perish. 


And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom 
shall I send, and who will go for us? Then I said, 
Here am I; send me. 


Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith 


the Lord of hosts. 


Except ye turn and become as little children, ye 
shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven. 


Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that he 
himself said, It is more blessed to give than to re- 
ceive. 


Sing unto the Lord, all the earth. 


Ixxvi TOSLHE® VEACHER 


The children then resume their seats. 

“Coming, Coming, Yes They Are,” is*played through 
once softly. Then the Light Bearers stand up once more 
and sing all the stanzas, and as they sing, some of their 
numbers, dressed as children of different countries, come 
forward on the platform from behind the screen, each 
carrying an unlighted candle—a Chinese, a Filipino, an 
Eskimo, an Indian, a Hindu, a Japanese, a Siamese, etc. 
They form two groups, leaving a space in the middle. 
When the hymn is finished and the Light Bearers are 
seated again, from behind the screen comes a boy, holding 
aloft a long, ighted wax taper with both hands. 

He stands in the center and says: 

. “ Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world.’ ” 

The children all: rise once more and respond: 

“Tn thy light shall we see light.” 

“The people that sat in darkness saw a great light, 
and to them that sat in the region and shadow of death, 
to them did light spring up.” 

“‘ Arise, shine; for thy light is come.” 

They sit down again. Then, one by one, the little 
foreigners come and light their small candles at the big 
one. 

This done, the other Light Bearers, still seated, sing: 

The boy with the taper, alone: 


“T heard the voice of Jesus say, 

Sleamethis-darkewosrla smichts 
Look unto me, thy morn shall rise, 

And all thy day be bright.’ ” 


The foreigners alone: 


“We looked to Jesus, and we found 
In himeoun star, ours suns 
And in that light of life we’ll walk, 
’ Till traveling days are done.” 


THe Enp. 


Time needed—About twenty minutes. 


—From The Missionary Mail. Used by permission. 


HOelH hel RACH ER Ixxvii 


CHAPTER XI, 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: To show 
the pupils that sometimes it takes-courage to do the 
right, and that they will gain courage for a crisis, by do- 
ing the right every day. 

Emphasize the point that Daniel must have known 
and kept the rules which his parents made for him at 
home, or he would not have known what it was right 
for him to do in a foreign land. 


With younger pupils give concrete examples of how 
they can be brave for the right when they are on their 
own responsibility. At home, perhaps, they are not al- 
lowed to eat candy except at mealtimes. What should 
they do if they are offered candy away from home? At 
home they go to bed at a certain time; when they are 
visiting grandmother, she says, “ When should you go 
to bed, Junior?’ What should they do? 

With older Juniors school problems can be introduced, 
and the question of courage to do the right when other 
members of the class want to do something else, which 
perhaps is not wrong from their point of view. Mother 
has forbidden John to go skating, on account of his cold. 
He wants to go, and the other boys urge him. It takes 
courage to be obedient, does it not? Or the other girls 
are going to the drug store for soda water. Mother has 
Folmebhayetnatesnesmusty pe Ccateitiein her eating for a 
few days because she has had an upset stomach. Here 
again it takes courage to refuse the invitation. 

Give this lesson a modern application. Dwell on the 
historical background at this time only long enough to 
make the situation clear. 


Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show the 
importance of exercising self-control. 


This lesson again should be made to touch the pupils’ 
own lives. The lesson of self-control is very important, 
for in this the foundations of future happiness and a 
valuable life are laid. The child who cannot control 
his greed, his temper, himself, will become a dangerous 
citizen in the future. The problem is difficult, for chil- 


Ixxvili SHOP Gis iD MLAS RAR 


dren are naturally self-indulgent and “they want what 
they want when they want it.” 


The material for the lesson is rather abstract. If your 
Juniors, however, are interested in school athletics, they 
will understand fully the requirements made of the mem- 
bers of the “team,” and “this will make a good point of 
contact. Girls as well as boys are very loyal to their 
schools, and it is not alone to the boys that this applies. 
They will understand what Paul means in his comparison 
vont PCr acelak ASE 

Expressional Session. The ‘Teacher’s Aim: ‘To make 
concrete the teachings of the preceding lessons. 

Lead the pupils to express their own ideas about self- 
control. .Perhaps a written lesson may be used, asking 
ahead of time that they write fifty words about self- 
control. Have these papers read, as far as possible. 


Perhaps you will like to put upon the blackboard the 
following acrostics: 


THINGS WHICH SELF-CONTROL WILL HELP 
YOU TO HAVE 


S incerity 

FE, arnestness 

L, oving-kindness 
aithfulness 


= 


arefulness 
bedience 
eatness 
rustworthiness 
ighteousness 
rder 

ove 


er ON ol ha Se 


TOS TEACH BE Ixxix 


THINGS WHICH SELF-CONTROL WILL HELP 
YOU TO AVOID 


elfishness 
nvy 

ying 
orgetfulness 


II nm 


onceit 

stentation (showing off) 
ervousness 

easing 

udeness 

ffending 

aziness 


ie) 0 OG 


CHAPTER XLI 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To impress 
upon the pupils the necessity of obedience to law, either 
home law, school law, or national law. 

Since the days of the War there has been a feeling of 
unrest and rebellion against law in the United States, 
and indeed throughout the world. Particularly is this 
true in regard to the Prohibition Amendment. ‘The les- 
son of the Rechabites is a good lesson in teaching obedi- 
ence to law. ‘These men obeyed the law given them by 
their ancestor in regard to wine. They banded them- 
selves together to fight for the right. We have a law 
given us by the majority of people in our country. We 
should obey it, and band ourselves together as a great 
national family, to keep it. 

Make the lesson rather a lesson of obedience than of 
temperance, though both points are involved. 

There is much breaking of law and of rule, in a lesser 
line, too, in this great country of ours. In the stations 
of the railroad terminals, young men sit smoking directly 
under the “ No Smoking” signs, not considering that in 
breaking the rule, they are giving discomfort to others. 
To break the speed laws in automobile-driving is com- 
mon. ‘The lesson to obedience to law is greatly needed 


Sio.e.d LO ei rel bok CE igi 


in all the United States to-day. Bring out the fact that 
the laws are made for the greatest good of the greatest 
number, and that for this reason they should be obeyed. 
We have no right to interfere with the rights of others. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show the 
pupils the value of unselfish service. ‘There are many 
examples of unselfish service to be found to-day as well 
as in the past. Perhaps you can begin your lesson by 
rapidly reviewing the characters of Bible history who 
stand out as having rendered particularly unselfish serv- 
ice. Ask what made Joseph stand out above the rest of 
the people of his time. He served. What made Moses 
stand out? He served. So did Joshua and Samuel and 
David. All these men were leaders who served. The 
truly great leader becomes a leader because he serves 
others and does not try to magnify himself. Washing- 
ton and Lincoln led the people of our nation. They also 
served. Bring out the fact that in unselfish service for 
others the great Leader whose example we should follow 
is our Master, Jesus, whose life was a life of service to 
men. In serving others we serve him. Perhaps in this 
connection you can review briefly Chapter XIV, the Sun- 
day Session, “A Parable in Action,” which showed Jesus 
washing the feet of the disciples. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show 
the pupils practical ways in which Juniors may serve. 

Make this a practical lesson in Christian civics, show- 
ing that the true follower of Jesus is a true patriot, who 
obeys laws and tries to do everything that he can do for 
the good of his country. Keep in mind this “ Good 
American Code”: 


1. The good American tries to gain and keep perfect 
health. 

2. The good American controls himself. 

3. ‘The good American is self-reliant. 

4. ‘The good American is reliable. 

5. The good American plays fair. 

6. ‘The good American does his duty. 

7. The good American tries to do the right thing in 
the right way. 


TO THE TEACHER Ixxxi 


8. The good American works in friendly codperation 
with his fellow workers. 

9. The good American is kind. 

10. The good American is loyal. 

The pupils have had civics instruction in their day- 
school classes. Correlate this lesson with such informa- 
tion as they already have. 


CuHapter XLII 


Week Day Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To give to 
the pupils a lesson in Christian patriotism, and to show 
them that the true patriot is a true Christian. 

Bring out the truth of the Memory Verse. Begin 
the lesson by asking the pupils which were the great- 
est nations of the past. What caused the downfall of 
Assyria? of Greece? of Rome? of Palestine? of Germany? 
The people were unrighteous. They forgot the rights 
of others. ‘They became selfishly self-indulgent. We 
want America to become greater and greater. We do not 
want it to fall as so many other great nations of the world 
navesaone.s, Llow canny we help to prevent’ this’) Our 
Memory Verse tells us that righteousness exalts a na- 
tion. If we keep our nation Christian, if we serve 
others, we shall help in making it endure. During the 
Great War the people of America showed that we were 
idealists, and that the charge that we were just a nation 
of people seeking for wealth, was false. The pupils 
should be shown the great ideals of the founders of our 
nation, and urged to keep these ideals before them. So 
will America continue on the upward path that it has 
been following in the past. Our Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, our Constitution, show love of God and of men. 
Let us carry out the ideals of our ancestors. 

Sunday Session. The Teacher’s Aim: ‘To show the 
signs of progress in our country. 

The “signs of progress” in our nation vary from time 
to time. There is no lack of signs of material progress. 
It is more difficult to point out signs of spiritual progress 
that affect the entire nation. By looking over the latest 
numbers of some of the magazines which deal with cur- 


Pex TONDTH EGE YA CTERR 


rent events, however, you will probably find some oc- 
currences which you can link up with service for others, 
which will always be a sign of progress. You will proba- 
bly find it easier to discover signs of progress in your 
own community—a new church building, for instance; 
a new charitable orgafiization; any local event which 
points to a spiritual awakening may be used to advantage. 

Expressional Session. The Teacher's Aim: ‘To lead 
the pupils to a realization that in Christian young people 
lies the hope of the world, and particularly in Christian 
young people of America. 

Lead the pupils to express a desire to help the world 
to become better, and to go on and on toward the goal 
which Jesus has set before them. 

This last lesson of the course should be a summing 
up of the ideals of the forty-two lessons studied. As a 
result of these lessons the pupils should express a real 
desire to help on in the world’s work, and to make their 
nation Christ’s nation, and the world Christ’s world. 


JESUS THE LIGHT OF THE 
WORLD 


PART I 





Ws ae 





CMa eat ld Da sed [ 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE LAND WHERE JESUS LIVED 
Deuteronomy 11:10-12; 34:1-3 
Memory VERSE 


“The land, whither ye go over to possess it, is a land of 
hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven, 
a land which Jehovah thy God careth for: the eyes of 
Jehovah thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of 


the year even unto the end of the year.’”—Deuteronomy 
WE Ba a 


Tue LEsson STORY 


Suppose that you could take a ship, and sail from 
Savannah, or from Charleston, on the eastern coast of the 
United States, straight along the thirty-second degree of lati- 
tude. Suppose that you could sail straight through the 
continent of Africa, and on and on, until you had sailed 
on the same thirty-second parallel, almost one third of the 
way around the globe. And then you would find yourself 
in the most wonderful country in the world—Palestine, 
where Jesus, the Saviour of the world, was born, and where 
he lived during the thirty-three years of his life on earth. 

Palestine is a little country, just about the shape and size 
of our State of New Hampshire. Its width is about one 
hundred miles, and its length from north to south about one 
hundred and fifty miles. At the northern boundary is the 
southern slope of snow-clad Mourit Hermon and the River 
Litany; at the south the country ends in the desert, which 
was called in Bible times “ The Wilderness of Zin.”” There 
are four distinct divisions, or zones, which extend in parallel 
lines from north to south. First there is the narrow coast 
plain along the Mediterranean Sea. Just east of this, as you 
can see on your map, is the central plateau. This sinks 
gradually into the famous Plain of Esdraelon, which rises 


1 





2 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


ever higher as we go south until we reach the fertile hills 
of Samaria; as we go still farther south these merge into 
the hills of Judah. The third zone contains the Jordan River 
and the Dead Sea Valley, twelve hundred and ninety-two 
feet below the level of the ocean, and the deepest depression 
in the earth’s surface. The fourth zone includes the plateaus 
which extend east of the Dead Sea into the Arabian Desert. 

Seas and Rivers. Although Palestine.extends down to 
the Mediterranean Sea—the people of Bible times called it 
“The Great Sea ’’—there are practically no harbors within 
the limits of the land. There are no navigable rivers except 
the Jordan, and even this does not reach the Mediterranean, 
for it flows into an inland sea, the Dead Sea, whose waters 
are said to be six times as salty as the water of the ocean, so 
that no fish can live in them. 

The Dead Sea is fifty miles along, and ten or twelve miles 
wide. Sixty-five miles north of it is a smaller but much 
more interesting sea—the Sea of Galilee. This is the most 
important body of water in Palestine. It is a beautiful, 
pear-shaped lake, twelve and three fourths miles long and 
eight miles wide at its widest point. It is sometimes called 
“The Lake of Gennesaret,” and sometimes ‘ The Sea of 
Tiberias.” Northwest of this sea is the Plain of Gennesaret. 
The Sea of Galilee abounds in fish, and several of Jesus’ 
disciples lived on its shores, and made their living by catch- 
ing fish in its waters. 

The Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea are connected by the 
Jordan River. The two seas are only sixty-five miles apart, 
but because of its turnings the river measures nearly two 
hundred miles. The Jordan has several sources ; one source 
near the city of Czesarea Philippi is one thousand feet above 
the sea level, but it descends so rapidly in its course to the 
Sea of Galilee that it has been given the name “the De- 
scender.” From the Sea of Galilee it flows down more 
slowly through the deepest depression of the earth’s surface 
to the Dead Sea. 

Climate. The climate of Palestine varies as much as 
the surface of the country. “In a journey of from two to 
three days,” it is said, “the traveler from west to east passes 
from the equable, balmy climate of the Mediterranean coast 
to the comparatively cold highlands of the central plateau 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


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4 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


and then down into the moist, tropical climate of the hot 
Jordan and the Dead Sea valleys. Thence he mounts the 
highlands of Gibeon or Moab, where the sun beats down hot 
at noonday, while the temperature falls low at night and deep 
snows cover the hilltops in winter. The hills of the central 
plateaus, covered with the*trees of the temperate zone, over- 
hang the palms and tropical fruit trees of the coast plains 
and the Jordan Valley.” 

The People of the Land. ‘The people who lived in 
Palestine were as different as the regions in which they 
lived. There were in the days of Christ, as there are to-day, 
tent dwellers and city dwellers, shepherds, herdsmen, farm- 
ers, and merchants. ‘The shepherds and herdsmen found 
good pasturage for their flocks in the hilly regions of the 
land, but the farmers of Palestine have always had to strug- 
gle against great odds, for the country is very rocky. There 
is a story among the heathen inhabitants which says that in 
the days of long ago a giant was sent to strew the earth’s 
surface with rocks. He passed through Europe and Africa, 
and the greater part of Asia, scattering his stones equally, 
but when he came to Syria and Palestine, his bag broke, and 
all the remaining stones fell there. So the farmer of Pales- 
tine even to this day continues to pick up these stones. 

The Cities of Jesus’ Day. The greatest city of Pales- 
tine in all its history, was JERUSALEM, the city of David, 
where Solomon, David’s wise son, built the "Temple to 
which the people went to worship God. Jerusalem was one 
of the old cities of the Bible. It is mentioned in Genesis 
14:18, where it is called “ Salem.” It was captured from its 
heathen inhabitants by David, and he made it the capital of 
his kingdom. In the days of Christ “It was a magnificant 
city of palaces, richly adorned with gold and colors . 
with the magnificent palaces of the Roman governor on the 
eastern hill and that of Herod and the high priests on Mount 
Zion, with marble circus, baths, amphitheaters, and temples 
humming with life and with gay throngs.” Particularly at 
the time of the passover, Jerusalem would be filled with 
people, for it is said that there were sometimes two million 
pilgrims in the city at this time. 

About six miles south of Jerusalem was BETHLEHEM, the 
little village where Jesus was born. It is only a little place, 


JUNTOR: CHURCH SCHOOL: LESSONS 5 


but many people consider it one of the three most famous 
cities in the world—Jerusalem and Nazareth being the other 
two. 

Nazareth, where Christ spent his boyhood is only a little 
village, too. It is far north of Jerusalem and Bethlekem, in 
Galilee. It is never mentioned in the Old Testament, and 
was only an obscure little place, but it has become famous 
because for almost thirty years of his life, Jesus lived and 
worked there. 
7 HANDWORK 

How to Make a Relief Map of Palestine. Take a cup 
of flour, a cup of salt, and a little powdered alum; mix 
into a stiff paste with warm water. Draw an outline map 
of Palestine on heavy cardboard. Most Bibles contain 
maps which show the elevations and depressions of the 
Holy Land. The hills and valleys of the land can be 
molded from these. When the maps are dry they can be 
colored with water colors, yellowish for the desert regions, 
green for fertile portions, blue for water areas. The cities 
can be indicated by white dots. 


NotEeBooK Work 

Take a new blank book, such as you can obtain from the 
ten-cent store. On the first inside page, write a title, ‘“‘ The 
Life of Christ—Jesus, the Light of the World,” as studied 
i, (INS? ce anaes DCHOOME Dans rarer. (Fill in the 
name of your own school, and your own name.) On the 
third page draw an outline map of Palestine, as large as 
your page will allow. As you learn about the places men- 
tioned in the life of Christ, you can insert them on your map. 
On the fifth page begin your story outline, something like 
this: “ When Christ was born, Palestine was ruled by 
LACE ee tres (Fill in the blanks.) ‘The king who 
Tiuecdmoveretnem was Mamed i. esi. as ene os He was a 
(good), (wicked) ruler. (Cross out the word which you do 
not wish to use.) 


Books T'Hat WiLL Herp You To KNow Asout PALESTINE 
“Fez and Turban Tales,” by Isabel M. Blake. 
“The Near East: Crossroads of the World,” by William 
Betiall: 


6 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“The Riddle of Nearer Asia,” by Basil Mathews. 
Silver Chimes in Syria,” by William 5. Nelson. 


SUNDAY SESSION 


THE PEOPLE AND THEIR RULERS IN 
JESUS’ DAY 


Luke 321) 210-14 > 5:17. 2019-27 
Memory VERSE 


“Concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet 
mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: and 
how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him up to be 
condemned to death, and crucified him.”—Luke 24:19b, 20. 


Tur Lesson Story 


In the days of long, long ago, even before the time of 
Christ, there were great powers struggling for supremacy 
just as they have been doing in modern times. One of 
these powers was Egypt; the others in these early days were 
Assyria and Chaldea and Babylonia and Persia, who suc- 
cessively controlled that part of Asia near the Tigris and 
Euphrates Rivers. Sometimes one nation was victorious, 
sometimes another; but always there was fighting among 
them. And though Palestine was only a little country, you 
can see by looking at the map in your day-school geog- 
raphy, that it lay just in the region through which the 
enemies from Africa and the enemies from Asia must pass 
to reach one another. Sometimes the enemies of Egypt 
marched through the land; sometimes the enemies of Chal- 
dea, or Babylonia, or Assyria, or Persia marched through. 
But it made little difference to the people of Palestine who 
was victorious; they always were the sufferers. 

At last because the people of Palestine had forgotten the 
true God, he allowed them to be taken captive by the foes 
from the north. After four hundred years of captivity, 
Cyrus, the Persian, sent them back to their own land to 
rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple, under the leadership of 
Ezra and Zerubbabel and Nehemiah. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 7 


But their troubles were not yet over. Egypt had been 
defeated by a new world power, the Greeks, and Alexander 
the Great of Macedon determined to make Greece the mis- 
tress of the world. He defeated the Persians and as one of 
the results, he and his successors became rulers of Palestine 
and Syria. ‘The poor little country of God’s chosen people 
was ruled by one foreign ruler after another, so that its 
people were little more than slaves. 

At last, in the second century before Christ, there was a 
revolt. A family of patriots called “’The Maccabees ” led 
in this rebellion, and for years the country was torn by war. 
The Maccabees gained supremacy for a time, and there were 
several strong, patriotic generals and rulers in Palestine, but 
another nation—Rome—gained the world supremacy, and 
in 66 B.c. Pompey, the Roman general, conquered Judea. 
So at the time Christ was born we find that Palestine was 
governed by rulers appointed by Rome—and that Judea was 
ruled by Herod the Great, called ‘“ The King of the Jews.” 

Herod the Great. Herod the Great was a wicked 
tyrant. He was merciless to his enemies, and laid huge 
taxes on the people. But he was a great builder, and im- 
proved his country wonderfully. He rebuilt many of the 
cities of Palestine and beautified them, and he tried to gain 
the favor of the Jews by rebuilding the Temple and making 
it doubly magnificent. But in spite of all his efforts the 
people hated him. 

The Pharisees and the Sadducees. During the time 
of the Maccabees these two religious parties had arisen in 
Palestine. The Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the 
dead, and the Sadducees did not. The Pharisees were ex- 
ceedingly strict in carrying out all the little details of re- 
ligion which they had added to the rules that God had 
given them for their guidance. They thought that they were 
far better than anyone else in Palestine—or in the world— 
and they thought so much of outward show that oftentimes 
they forgot the really important things in religion—love of 
God and love of men. 

The Hope of the People Who Were True to God. But 
besides the Roman rulers and the Pharisees and the Sad- 
ducees, there were many people in Israel who believed in the 
- true God and longed for the day when his promise of a 


8 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Messiah should come true. They knew that Christ had 
been foretold by their prophets ; they hoped and prayed that 
the day would soon come when Israel would be redeemed. 
And when Christ did come, there were many who believed 
in him and rejoiced. 

We of the world of to-day, almost two thousand years 
after the birth of Christ, should rejoice that we know him 
and his love; we know that the hope promised to the people 
of Israel, and to the whole world, has been fulfilled and we 
must do our part now in helping to carry out his command 
to tell of him to all the nations. 


Puttine THE Lesson INtTo THE LIFE oF THE CLASS 


We should thank God that we live in a free country, 
where we govern ourselves, without control of foreign 
rulers. 

We should thank him that we know of him and of Jesus, 
and can worship him openly and without fear. 

Our country has many things which Palestine did not 
have, even though its people were God’s chosen people. But 
we are God’s chosen people, too, and because our ancestors 
believed in God and in Christ, we have many, many bless- 
ings which the people of the days of Christ did not know. 


Tue Lesson TRutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Loyalty. We can show our love for others 
by being loyal to them, Therefore: 

1. We will be true to God, and try to do as he would 
have us do. 

2. We will be true to our country in every way and try 
to keep its laws. 

3. We will be true to our parents, in every way, and try 
to obey them. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
LOVE OF GOD AND OF OUR COUNTRY 
THe CrLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we thank thee that we do not live 
in the days before Christ was born, or in a land where he is 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 9 


not known. We thank thee that we have around us the 
blessings that his coming has brought to the world, and that 
we live in Christian homes in a Christian nation. Help us 
to do our share in keeping our nation true to thee. May we 
always try to carry out thy commands and to be true and 
loyal to our parents and to our country and to thee, our God. 
We ask this for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


PM xoduse20.12) Deuteronomy 14:2. Psalms 33):2-)92-12- 
122:6; Proverbs 11:28; Isaiah 9:6, 7; 11:9; I Peter 2:9, 10, 


Hymns TuHat May Bk USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“Happy Town of Salem.” 

“ Summer Suns Are Glowing.” 

“ Jerusalem, the Golden.” 

“O Mother Dear, Jerusalem.” 

“For the Beauty of the Earth.” 

“All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name.” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Where did God first promise to bless the descendants 
of Abraham? 
2. What promise did he make to Isaac? 
3. What promise did he make to Jacob? 
4, What promise did he make to David? 
5. Why was it necessary for the chosen people to be 
punished by the Captivity? 
6. What lessons did they learn through this punishment? 
7, Why did so many of them fail to believe in Christ 
when he came? 
8. In what ways does our nation show its belief in 
Christ? 
9. In what ways does the world show its belief in Christ? 
10. In what ways does the world fail to show a belief 
in Christ? 
Topics For DiscussiON oR REPORTS 


1. The Kingdom the Jews Expected, and the Kingdom 
Christ Established. 


10 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 


2. Some Things Which the World Did Not Have Before 
the Days of Christ. 

3. Some Things Which We Have Because Christ Lived. 

4. Some Things Which We Have That Nations Not 
Christian Do Not Have. — 

5. The Blessings God Has Given Us. 


GHAPT HR LL 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE TEMPLE OF HEROD 
I Kings, chapter 6 
Memory VERSE 


“TI say unto you, that one greater than the temple is 
here.”—Matthew 12:6. 


THe LESSON STORY 


For many years Herod the Great ruled in Palestine under 
the Romans. But he was by no means popular among the 
Jews. He had begun his reign by many cruel acts, and 

these were never forgotten, although he tried in every way 
- to gain the favor of the people. 


Herod’s Temple. One of the greatest and most popular 
things that Herod did was to rebuild the Temple, and to 
make it one of the most magnificent structures in the world. 

Herod’s Temple was the third Temple that had been built 
in Jerusalem. Solomon’s Temple was the first—a wonder- 
ful and beautiful building built by rich King Solomon and 
fitted out most magnificently. This had been destroyed at 
the time when Jerusalem was captured by the Babylonians 
in 587 B. c.—that is, at the time of the Babylonian Captivity. 
(See Chapter I.) 

The second Temple was built under the direction of 
Zerubbabel when the Jews returned from the Exile. They 
were very poor, and the second Temple could not be com- 
pared to the first in splendor. Cyrus of Persia, however, 
returned the sacred vessels and dishes which had been car- 
ried away from the first Temple, and these, of course, were 
in use, 


It was this Temple which Herod rebuilt. He tried to 


11 


12 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


make his Temple even more beautiful than that of Solomon. 
The area covered was twice as great, though the inner part— 
the main building—was of the same size as in Solomon’s 
Temple. It took over eighty years to complete the building 
of Herod’s Temple. | 

How beautiful the Temple was we can only imagine. It 
was built on Mount Zion and overtopped all the city of Jeru- 
salem. It was made of white marble and gold, with won- 
derful furnishings and most beautiful hangings. It could 
accommodate at least two hundred and ten thousand people. 

A writer who has studied the old accounts of the Temple 
writes about it as follows: “The Mount itself seemed like 
an island, abruptly rising from out deep valleys, surrounded 
by a sea of walls, palaces, streets, and houses, and crowned 
by a mass of snowy marble and glittering gold, rising ter- 
race upon terrace. . . . At its northwestern angle, and 
connected with it, frowned the Castle of Antonia, held by 
the Roman garrison. The lofty walls were pierced by mas- 
sive gates. . . . Within the gates ran all around covered, 
double colonnades, with here and there benches for those 
who resorted thither for prayer or for conference. ‘The 
most magnificent of these was the southern, or twofold, 
double colonnade, with a wide space between; the most ven- 
erable, the ancient ‘ Solomon’s Porch,’ or eastern colonnade. 
Passing out of these ‘colonnades’ or ‘ porches,’ you 
entered the ‘ Court of the Gentiles.’ ” 

This court was the only part of the Temple into which 
those not Jews could go. There were situated the markets, 
where animals for sacrifice were sold, and there the tables of 
the money changers were placed. Many Jews came from 
foreign lands, and brought foreign money with them. It 
was necessary to pay the Temple tax with Jewish money, 
and the money changers, at a small profit, changed the for- 
eign money to Jewish money. 

A low wall separated the Court of the Gentiles from the 
inner court, and tablets forbade the Gentiles to enter 
this court on pain of death. At the east was the Beautiful 
Gate, which led into the Court of the Women, which both 
women and men were allowed to enter. In the Court of the 
Women were the Treasury and the thirteen trumpet-shaped 
boxes for the offerings of the worshipers. Here, too, the 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 13 





tae NH a BM mt 


Cate Mla lees 


PLAN OF HEROD’S TEMPLE 


14 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Levites who had charge of the musical part of the service 
had their place. 

Beyond the Court of the Women was the Upper Court, 
which was divided into two parts, the narrower part form- 
ing the Court of Israel, the wider part the Court of the 
Priests. Here were placed a great altar, made of unhewn 
stones that no tool had ever touched, and a laver where there 
was water for sacrificial purposes. 

The most sacred parts of the Temple came next, on a still 
higher terrace. First came the Holy Place, furnished with 
the golden candlestick, with seven branches, which was kept 
constantly burning ; the table for showbread, on which twelve 
loaves of unleavened bread were placed every Sabbath; and 
the golden altar of incense. Back of this, with its entrance 
concealed by a heavy, double veil, was the Holy of Holies, 
where, in Solomon’s day, the Ark of the Covenant contain- 
ing the Law had been kept. These things had disappeared 
at the time of the Exile, and in Herod’s Temple the little 
room was empty. (Read about the Holy of Holies in Solo- 
mon’s Temple, in I Kings 8:6-11.) 

The Priests. The priests who carried on the services 
of the Temple were divided into twenty-four divisions, or 
“courses.” At the time of Jesus it is estimated that there 
were twenty thousand priests, so that each priest had to come 
to Jerusalem twice each year to serve a week in the Temple. 

The Temple Services. The services of the Temple be- 
gan before daybreak. A priest watching at the highest part 
of the Temple sounded a trumpet at the first sign of light in 
the east, and soon everyone was busy. Lots were drawn to 
show everyone’s duties. Some of the priests examined the 
animals to be used as the burnt offerings; some prepared 
the utensils. But the most sacred office was to burn the 
incense in the Holy Place. A priest could do this only once 
in his lifetime, and he felt that God had highly honored him 
if the lot fell to him to do it. He selected two friends to 
help him. One of these removed from the altar what was 
left from the previous evening’s service; the other spread 
the coals from the burnt offering on the altar. Then the 
priest was left alone to make to God the most sacred prayer 
of the Jewish people. 

Christ, Our Sacrifice. God had been pleased when 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 15 


David and Solomon planned the great Temple in his honor. 
He was pleased that the Jews loved the Temple in the time 
of Herod, and made sacrifices there to atone for their sins. 
But Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, was sacrificed 
on the cross, to atone for the sins of all the people of the 
earth. Because “God .. . loved us, and sent his Son 
to be the propitiation for our sins,” it is no longer necessary 
for us to sacrifice animals in the Temple, as the Jews did. 
In our churches nowadays we pray to him and give him 
praise and thanks, and learn of him. We eat the Lord’s 
Supper in remembrance of him. And all the time we must 
love him and try to obey him; we must love others and try 
to serve them, as he did, for his sake. 


“ Not all the blood of beasts 
On Jewish altars slain, 
Could give the guilty conscience peace, 
Or wash away the stain: 


“ But Christ, the heavenly Lamb 
Takes all our sins away, 
A Sacrifice of nobler name 
And richer blood than they.” 


HANDWORK 


It would be interesting to build a model of the Temple in 
connection with this lesson. A large, flat box lid might be 
used as a foundation and other box lids used to form the 
various terraces and rooms. Follow the drawing given with 
this lesson. Remember that the entire Temple was of white 
marble and of gold. 


Noresook Work 


Make in your notebooks an outline drawing of Herod’s 
Temple, such as is given with this lesson. Copy these sen- 
tences in your book: “In the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s 
Temple there was something which had disappeared at the 
time of Herod’s Temple. This was (I Kings 
8:6-11). Solomon’s Temple was greater than that of Herod 
in gold and marble, but Herod’s Temple was more glorious 
than that of Solomon because Jesus, the Saviour of the 
world, blessed it with his presence.” 








16 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Books WHERE You CAN FIND Out SOMETHING ABOUT 
THE THREE TEMPLES 


“The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah,” Eder- 
sheim. 

“A Dictionary of the Bible,” by John D. Davis, Article on 
“Temple.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE FORERUNNER OF JESUS 
Luke, chapter 1 


MEMORY VERSES 


“Yea and thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the 
Most High: 

For thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to make 
ready his ways; 

To give knowledge of salvation unto his people 

In the remission of their sins, 

Because of the tender mercy of our God, 

Whereby the dayspring from on high shall visit us, 

To shine upon them that sit in darkness and the shadow 
of death ; 

To guide our feet into the way of peace.” 


—TLuke 1376-79) 


Tue Lesson Story 


“ Good-by, Elisabeth. I shall be back in about ten days, 
when I have finished my duties at the Temple and have 
visited our relatives in Jerusalem. I wish that you were 
going with me.” 

Zacharias, the priest, was going to Jerusalem for his week 
of service in the Temple. He and his wife Elisabeth were 
kindly old people, living in the hill country of Judea, per- 
haps eighteen miles south of Jerusalem. ‘Twice each year 
for many years he had gone to Jerusalem to do his part in 
the services there. He and Elisabeth were good people ; they 
loved God and their country ; they longed for the coming of 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 17 


the Messiah who had been promised to the Jews so many 
centuries before. 

As Zacharias journeyed along, he was thoughtful. He did 
not like to leave Elisabeth alone; they had no children, and 
he knew that she was lonely without him. He wished that 
they had a son. | 

Zacharias did not know that something very wonderful 
was going to happen to him. This journey seemed just like 
all the others that he had made twice each year, for so many 
years. But it was going to be very different. On the first 
morning that Zacharias’ “ course,” which was named “ the 
course of Abijah,” was called on to perform its duties in the 
Temple, it was he who was chosen by lot to burn the incense 
in the Temple—the greatest honor that could come to a 
priest. In all the years of his service he had longed for this 
honor, and now at last it came to him! He entered into the 
Holy Place; his two friends did their share of the work, 
worshiped, and withdrew. He was left alone. He began to 
say the prayers which were appointed for the service, when 
suddenly he found that he was not alone. There was an 
angelic being with him—Gabriel, God’s messenger. 

“Do not be afraid,” said Gabriel. “I have a message for 
you from God. He has heard your prayer for a child, and 
now, after all these years, a son 1s going to come to you. 
And he shall be a great prophet—the forerunner of the 
Messiah whom God will send to his people. You shall name 
him ‘ John.’ ”’ 

“How can these things be?” asked Zacharias. “Iam an 
old man and I do not see how this wonderful thing can hap- 
pen to me.” 

“T am Gabriel, God’s messenger,” the angel answered. 
“As a sign that these things shall come true, you shall not 
be able to speak until they come to pass.” And with these 
words he was gone, leaving Zacharias alone before the altar. 

The people outside were praying. They knew that 
Zacharias was in the Holy Place a long time; they were sure 
that something unusual had happened. At last Zacharias 
came out of the sanctuary. He stood before them, but he 
could not speak, to tell them what had happened. The 
people saw that he was dumb and said to one another, “ He 
hath seen a vision.” And, wondering what had happened, 


DB) 


18 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


they left the Temple, talking of what Zacharias could have 
seen. 

And did a son come to Zacharias and Elisabeth? Of 
course he did, and they and all their neighbors rejoiced 
greatly. When he was eight days old they came together 
to give him his name. All the neighbors wanted to name 
the baby “ Zacharias ” after his father. But Zacharias shook 
his head. “ His name is to be John,” said Elisabeth. “ Why 
is this?” asked some one. ‘‘ None of your relatives has 
that name.” ‘Then Zacharias took a tablet and wrote on it, 
“Tis name is John.” And immediately the angel’s message 
was carried out; Zacharias’ “lips were opened,” and he 
broke into a song of praise which we call the “ Benedictus,” 
a word which means “ Blessed.” Part of this song is your 
Memory Work for to-day. You will find the rest in Luke 
1:68-79. See how much of it you can learn. 


Mrmory Work 
Learn the Benedictus. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


A Junior should help in keeping the church and school- 
room in order. 

A Junior should be punctual and regular in attending the 
services of the church. 

A Junior should be attentive and reverent in God’s house. 


Puttine THE Lesson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Zacharias and Elizabeth had all their lives been devoted 
servants of God. So he honored and rcwarded them by 
sending to them a son who was to be the forerunner of 
Jesus Christ. We, too, must obey God’s laws and try to do 
our best. ‘Then we shall be worthy of honor, if he wishes 
to send us honors. 

The Jews of Jesus’ time were constant in their attendance 
at the services of the Temple. We should be constant in our 
attendance at church. 

The Jews of Jesus’ time were reverent in attending the 
Temple services. We should be reverent in church and 
Sunday school, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 19 


THE Lesson TrRuTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Faithfulness. God chose Zacharias and 
Elisabeth for a great honor because they were faithful to 
him. We should try to be faithful and loyal, so that we 
may be ready for whatever honor he sends us. 


A Story oF FAItHFUL OBEDIENCE 


“John Watson doesn’t seem to be doing his work very 
well,” said Miss Lawrence, John’s teacher, to the principal, 
Mr. Bucknell, one day. “ He is such a bright boy, too, and 
I know that it is just carelessness on his part. He has stood 
at the head of the class so long that he thinks he’s a fixture. 
If he isn’t more careful, Mildred Beall will get ahead of 
him. She isn’t so quick, but she certainly studies hard.” 


Miss Lawrence was right. John had stood at the head of 
the class in the sixth grade and in the seventh, and now he 
expected to be in the same position in the eighth. He was so 
sure of himself that he sometimes played ball with the other 
fellows all afternoon, and then, as the spring days got longer, 
he played all evening, too, because he thought he would 
remember if he just glanced down the page on his way to 
school. He was having such a good time that before he 
realized it, spring examinations came. And _ then—he 
couldn’t answer more than half the questions on the paper! 
He failed miserably, and, what was worse, his daily average 
had been so much poorer than he expected that he had only 
fourth place in the class. And when the class graduated 
from the grammar school, Mildred Beall got the medal, and 
he wasn’t even mentioned! “ Mildred Beall,’ Mr. Bucknell 
said, as he made the award, “has been a faithful worker. 
She did not think that she would stand first in the class, but 
she has tried to do what is right. We are glad to announce 
that she has finished grammar school with an average of 87. 
We hope that other members of the class will follow ier ex- 
ample when they get into high school, and be faithful and 
conscientious in their daily work.” And John was sure that 
Mr. Bucknell looked straight at him; for he knew that he 
had not been either faithful or conscientious ! 


20 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
OUR LOVES BOR] THE GHURGH 
THe CiAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to love the church and 
be as loyal to it as the Jews were to the Temple. ‘Teach us 
that Jesus, the Saviour of the world, would like to have us 
go to church and to Sunday school regularly and punctually 
and reverently, as he went. Teach us that the church is thy 
house. May we always think of it in this way. For Jesus’ 
sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Psalm 84; Luke 1:76-79; Psalms 23:6; 24:3-5; 27:4; 
122:1; 11:4; Matthew 21:13; Luke 19:46. 


Hymns THat May Bs Usep In CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“T Love Thy Kingdom Lord.” 

‘To Lhy Lemple [Repair 

“ Enter Into His Gates,’ from “ Carols.” 

“The Sabbath Bells Are Ringing,” from “The Primary 
and Junior Hymnal.” 


QUESTIONS FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. How many Temples had been built in Jerusalem? 

2. Who built the Temple of Christ’s day? 

3. What can you tell about it? 

4. How do we know that Zacharias and Elisabeth loved 
God? 

5. Is there anything in our present-day church service 
like the service of Zacharias in the Temple? 

6. Is there anything in our present-day church service 
like the service when the baby John was eight days old? 

7. What is the Benedictus ? 

8. Repeat as much as you can of the Benedictus. 

9. The name “John” means “The Lord is gracious.” 
A “Christian name ” is the name given you in baptism, your 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 21 


personal name. See if you can find out the meaning of your 
own Christian name. Perhaps it is given in the dictionary. 

10. Why are sacrifices such as the Jews had, unnecessary 
for Christian people? 


Topics For Discussion or REpor's 


1. The Temple of Solomon. 

2. ‘The Temple of Herod. 

3. In What Way Was the Temple of Herod More 
Greatly Honored Than the Temple of Solomon? 

4. The Priests of Jesus’ Day and Their Duties. 

5.. How We Can Show Our Love and Loyalty as Well 
as the Ancient Jews Did. 

6. How Zacharias and Elisabeth Made Ready for the 
Honor God Sent Them. 

7. How We Can Be Ready if God Sends US Responsi- 
bilities. 


CHAPTER III 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE BIRTH OF JESUS FORETOLD 


Genesis 22:18; Isaiah 9:6, 7; Jeremiah 23:5, 6; Luke 
{ :26-56 


MeEmory VERSE 


“ Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will raise 
unto David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king 
and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness 
in the land.”—Jeremiah 23:5. 


THE LESSON STORY 

All through the history of the people of Israel God had 
promised them good things, if they would only love him and 
serve him. Because they were disobedient and forgetful of 
his laws, he had punished them and put foreign rulers in 
control of the government. And yet, all through the history 
of the people, there were prophets who told of the time 
when a Saviour—a Messiah—should come to redeem the 
children of Israel. All true Jews looked forward to this 
day; they expected a king who should conquer their ene- 
mies and become the ruler of the world. 

Some of the Prophecies. Even as far back as the days 
of the Garden of Eden, we find that God promised a 
Saviour who should carry on warfare against Satan. To 
Abraham, who was the founder of the Jewish nation, God 
had promised that all the nations of the world should be 
blessed through his descendants. Genesis 22:18. 

The prophets of the days before the Jews were taken into 
exile were, however, the clearest in what they promised 
about the coming of a Messiah. IsaranH lived about seven 
hundred and fifty years before Christ, in the days of Uzziah 
and Jotham and Ahaz and Hezekiah, Isaiah I:1—that is, 
in the time just before the Jews were carried into exile. In 


22 


» 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 23 


the midst of these days of trouble, Isaiah foretold a happier 
time, when the Saviour of the world should come. About 
the same period JEREMIAH, too, prophesied of One who 
should be “ THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” Jeremiah 23:6. 

But the days passed slowly to the people of Palestine. 
Their Roman rulers were cruel, taxes were heavy, and they 
had little freedom. Though many of the Jews were thought- 
less and careless, the true patriots longed for the days when 
the promised Redeemer should come; they longed for some 
wonderful victory over their enemies. 

Mary of Nazareth. ‘There is a little, hill-set town in 
Galilee, whose name, Nazareth, is not even mentioned in the 
Old Testament. There lived a young woman, beautiful not 
only in face, but also in character. ‘Though she was a 
descendant of the great King David, she was poor and un- 
important in the eyes of the haughty Pharisees of Jerusa- 
lem. She was engaged to be married to Joseph, the car- 
penter of Nazareth. Though much younger, she was a cousin 
of Elisabeth, the wife of Zacharias, the priest, of whom we 
studied last week. Mary loved her older cousin Elisabeth 
very dearly, but they did not see very much of each other, 
for Nazareth was more than ninety miles from Hebron, in 
the hill country of Judea, where we think that Zacharias and 
Elisabeth lived. 

One day about six months after the day when the angel 
Gabriel had appeared to Zacharias in the Temple and told 
him of the coming of the baby John, Mary was praying. 
Perhaps she was up on the roof of her house, for the flat 
housetop was a favorite place for the people of Palestine 
when they wanted a quiet hour for prayer. Suddenly, as 
Mary prayed, an angel appeared to her. It was the angel 
Gabriel, who had appeared also to Zacharias in the Temple. 
For her, too, he had a message. 

“ Hail,” he said, “thou that art highly favored, the Lord 
is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” 

Mary was frightened. She did not know what to say. 
But the angel continued to speak. ‘Do not be afraid,’ he 
said. ‘God has seen thee, and thou hast found favor with 
him. He sends a message that thou shalt become the mother 
of the Messiah, who is to save the world. Thy cousin Elisa- 
beth, too, is to have a son.” 


24 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


As Mary heard the words of Gabriel, she rejoiced. She 
bent her head and said, “‘ Behold the handmaid of the Lord; 
be it unto me according to thy word.” 

As silently as he had come the angel departed. For a little 
while I think, Mary knelt and prayed, and then she returned 
to her daily duties—to the housework that must be done— 
going to the village well for water, preparing the meals, 
washing the dishes, and sweeping and dusting. 

Mary and Elisabeth. Not long after Mary received the 
message of the angel Gabriel, she determined to visit her 
cousin Elisabeth in the hill country of Judea. It was eighty 
miles from Nazareth to Jerusalem, and Hebron, where we 
think that Zacharias and Elisabeth lived, was about 
eighteen miles farther south. Mary probably made the 
journey on donkey back. Perhaps she walked part of the 
way. 

When she reached the house of Zacharias and Elisabeth, 
Elisabeth greeted her with joy. In some way the Lord had 
told her, too, of the honor that was to come to Mary. 

The Magnificat. When Mary greeted Elisabeth she 
said words that are frequently sung nowadays by the choirs 
in our churches—the song which we call the “ Magnificat,” 
because of its first words, just as we called the song of 
Zacharias, Chapter II, the “ Benedictus,” because of its first 
words. Read over the Magnificat in your Bibles. You will 
find it in Luke 1:46-55. After you have read it, read the 
prayer of Hannah, when Samuel was born. I Samuel 2:1-10. 
Don’t you think that Mary must have known something of 
this old prayer which Hannah made over a thousand years 
before? Mary must have known a great deal about the 
history of her people. 

Mary stayed at the home of Elisabeth about three months, 
before she returned to Nazareth. You can imagine how 
they talked and planned during that visit, and how they 
wondered at the great honor which God was showing them. 


Mar Work 


On the map on your class blackboard, and in your note- 
books, mark Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Hebron, where it is 
probable that Zacharias and Elisabeth lived. You will find 
that these places are often referred to in your lessons. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 

























































































































































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26 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


NoteBook WorkK 


Enter in your notebooks the title of this lesson, and copy 
the words of the prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah, which 
are given in your lesson material. ‘Then write the head- 
ing, “ The Time of Fulfillment Draws Near,” and put in the 
main occurrences of this lesson: The Angel Gabriel Appears 
to Mary; Mary Goes to Visit Elisabeth; Mary Says the 
Words of the Magnificat. 


Mrmory Work 
Learn the words of the Magnificat. 





SUNDAY SESSION 
DH Ea ERE Obey oS 
Luke 2 :8-20 
MrMmory VERSES 


“ And the angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold, 
I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all 
the people: for there is born to you this day in the city of 
David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.”—Luke 2:10, 11. 


Tue Lesson Story 


John, the son of Zacharias and Elisabeth, was several 
months old. Mary had returned to Nazareth, and had been 
married to Joseph, the carpenter of Nazareth. 

About this time the Roman Government determined to 
place a new tax upon the people of Palestine. In order to 
do this, they ordered that a census be taken, and so that the 
count might be complete, they ordered each man in Palestine 
to return to the city or town where his ancestors had be- 
longed. Joseph was a descendant of David, and Bethlehem 
was David’s city. Bethlehem was five miles from Jerusa- 
lem, and in our week-day lesson we learned that Jerusalem 
was eighty miles south of Nazareth. So, in order to be 
counted, Joseph and Mary had to make a long journey of 
over eighty miles. 

Many other people were making the same journey, and 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 27 


when Joseph and Mary reached Bethlehem, there was no 
room for them at the inn. The landlord found a place for 
them in the courtyard where the cattle were kept, and there 
the little Lord Jesus, the Saviour of the world, was born 
and laid in a manger. 

In the fields near the little town of Bethlehem there were 
shepherds keeping watch over their flocks that night. As 
they watched, a great light appeared in the sky, and also an 
angel who spoke to them. He told them the good news of 
the birth of Jesus: “ Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you 
good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people: 
for there is born to you this day in the city of David a 
Saviour, who is Christ the Lord. And this shall be the sign 
unto you: Ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, 
and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the 
angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and 
saying, 

Glory to God in the highest, 

And on earth peace among men in whom he is well 
pleased.” 

The angels gave their message, and were gone. The shep- 
herds spoke to one another in awed voices, and then one of 
them suggested that they go to Bethlehem, to see the new 
Baby King of whom they-had heard. They hurried through 
the silent streets of the little city, and found Mary and 
Joseph and the Babe lying in the manger. They knelt and 
worshiped, and then went back to their work as shepherds, 
telling all they met of the wonderful thing that had hap- 
pened to them. 

“But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her 
heart.” 

There are many stories that tell us of the shepherds’ visit 
to the Baby King, but all we really know is given in the 
lesson material for to-day. Perhaps, though, you would 
like to read what some of those who love the Baby Jesus 
think may have been true. Here are the names of some of 
the stories of this kind: 

“The Sad Shepherd,” by Henry van Dyke. 

“The Little Gray Lamb” in “ Stories for Sunday Tell- 
ing,” by Bailey. 

“The Childhood of Jesus,” by Henry van Dyke. 


28 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


MeEmMory WorxK 


Learn the words of Luke 2:8-20, if you do not already 
know them. 


Puttine THE Lesson ENTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


God sent his Son to be the Redeemer of the world. We 
should love him and praise him for his great Gift to us. 

The angels and the shepherds rejoiced that the Lord had 
come. We, too, should rejoice and praise him, 

Think of what the world would probably have been like if 
Christ had not come. You can tell something about this 
when you think what heathen countries are like to-day. 
Christ’s last command was that his followers should tell 
others about him. How can you help to do this? 


Tue Lesson TrutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Grateful Obedience. 

God “ loved us, and sent his Son.” Therefore: 

We should love him, and try to do those things that he 
wants us to do. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


THANKSGIVING FOR GOD'S BEST GIFT TO THE 
WORLD 


Tue Cyiass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we are so grateful to thee for thy 
best Gift to us and to the whole world—the gift of thy Son. 
We know that the world in which we live would have been 
a very different place if he had not lived and died and risen 
again. We thank thee that we live in a Christian land, 
where our rulers try to do thy will, and follow thy com- 
mands. We thank thee that we have churches and schools 
and hospitals, in which we are cared for and trained to 
know about thee. For all these things we give thanks to 
thee, and to thy Son, Jesus Christ. Amen. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 29 


VERSES For USE IN THE MEETING 


John 3:16; I John 4:19; Matthew 1:21b, c; Isaiah 9:6, 7; 
11 :1-9; Malachi 3:1; John 3:36; I John 3:10. 


Hymns Tuat May Be UseEp IN CoNNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


ae O Little Town of Bethlehem, How Still We See Thee 
Ten 

“While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night.” 

“We've a Story to Tell to the Nations.” 

“Come, All Ye Shepherds.” 

“Hark! the Herald Angels Sing.” 

* Away in a Manger.” 

“ Silent Night.” 

“Tt Came Upon the Midnight Clear.” 

“Once in Royal David’s City.” 

“Joy to the World.” 

“What Child Is This?” 

The First Noél.” 


QUESTIONS For Usk IN THE MEETING 


1. What was the name of the angel who appeared to 
Mary and to Zacharias? Can you find any mention of him 
in the Old Testament? 

2. What were some of the prophecies concerning the 
Messiah, which are found in the Old Testament ? 

3. How far is it from Nazareth to Jerusalem? 

4, Who was the ruler of the Jews at the time of Jesus’ 
birth? 

5. What name has been given to the words which Mary 
spoke when she greeted Elisabeth? 

6. What name has been given to the words which 
Zacharias spoke at the time when the baby John was named? 

7. Name some of the things which we have in the world 
to-day which you think that we would not have if Jesus had 
not come. 

8. Name some things that are different in your life from 
what you would have if you were a boy or a girl in China, 
or in some other place where Christ is not known as we in 
America know him. 


30 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


9. What can you do to help in spreading the news of 
Christ’s coming? 

10. How can you help to make the world better, as Christ 
wants it to be? 


‘Topics For DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


How We Can Thank God for His Gift to the World. 
What the Coming of Christ Has Meant to Me. 
What the Coming of Christ Meant to the Jews. 
What the Coming of Christ Has Meant to the World. 
. Helping to Tell the Story of Christ at Home (Home 
Missions. ) 

6. Helping to Tell the Story of Christ Abroad (Foreign 
Missions. ) 


SB EAN 


CHAE BE Reis 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
(eoU SAL IK paves ite tOehH Halt NPE 
Luke 2 :21-38 


Memory VERSE 


“ Now lettest thou thy servant depart, Lord, 

According to thy word, in peace; 

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, 

Which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples.” 
—Luke 2 :29-31. 


Tuer LESSON STORY 


Do you remember how the friends and relatives of 
Zacharias and Elisabeth came together when the baby John 
was eight days old, to give him his name, and how it came 
about that he was called “ John,” instead of Zacharias, the 
name which the friends of his father and mother wanted to 
give him? (Chapter II.) The angel Gabriel had told 
Zacharias that the name of his son should be John. An 
angel appeared, also, to Joseph the husband of Mary, in 
a dream, and told him the name which should be given to 
the Baby Jesus. As John had been named when he was eight 
days old, Jesus, too, was named on the eighth day, accord- 
ing to the old Jewish Law. Then, when he was about forty 
days old, he was taken to the Temple. 

This was done, too, according to the old Jewish Law, for 
long, long before the days of Jesus, God had given certain 
rules to the people of Israel which they followed carefully. 
At the time of the Exodus God slew the oldest son in each 
Egyptian household, but the first-born of the Jews was 
spared. So, in memory of this event, God had decreed that 
the oldest son in each Jewish family belonged to him. Ac- 
cording to the Law of Moses he had to be redeemed, or 
“bought back,” from God, by the payment of five shekels— 


31 


32 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


a sum which would be equivalent to between three and four 
dollars in our money. This “redemption” could be made 
from any priest, and attendance at the Temple was not 
necessary. But it was usual, when the parents of the baby 
were near the Temple, to take him there. So, when Jesus 
was forty days old, Mary and Joseph carried him from 
Bethlehem, five miles to Jerusalem, up to the great marble 
and gold Temple, into the Court of the Women. (Find it 
on your plan of the Temple, page 13). The ceremony of 
redemption was very simple. The child was presented to 
the priest, there were two short benedictions, and the re- 
demption money was paid. 

Mary, too, at this time offered the sacrifices which were 
required by the Law from the méthers of little babies. They 
had to make an offering of a turtledove, or a young pigeon, 
and a lamb. In the case of the poor, a second turtledove 
or pigeon might take the place of the lamb. Mary brought 
two turtledoves as her offering. Do you think that she was 
rich or poor? 7 

A writer who knows a great deal about the history of the 
Jews, has described the scene in the Tenple. Mary had 
given her Child to the Lord, and had received him back; 
she had made her offering. ‘“ And now the sound of the 
organ, which announced throughout the vast Témple build- 
ings that the incense was about to be kindled on the Golden 
Altar, summoned those who were to be purified.” The at- 
tendants arranged those who presented themselves before 
the Lord within the wickets on either side of the great gate 
at the top of the fifteen steps which led from the Court of 
the Women to the Court of Israel. “It was as if they were 
to be brought nearest to the sanctuary; as if theirs were to 
be specially the ‘ prayers’ that rose in the cloud of incense 
from the Golden Altar; as if for them specially the sacri- 
fices were laid on the Altar of Burnt Offering; as if theirs 
was a larger share of the benediction which, spoken by the 
lips of the priests, seemed like Jehovah’s answer to the 
prayers of the people; theirs especially the expression of j joy 
symbolized in the drink offering, and the hymn of praise. 

. From where they stood they could see it all, share 
in it, rejoice in it. And now the general service was over, 
and only those remained who brought special sacrifices, or 


INQH NVYWIOH—YTGWAL AHL NI SASL 








JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 33 


who lingered near them that had such, or whose loved abode 
was ever in the Temple. The purification service, with such 
unspoken prayer and praise as would be the outcome of a 
grateful heart, was soon ended. . . . Now all stain was 
removed, and, as the Law put it, they might again partake 
of sacred offerings.” 

It happened that at the time when the Baby Jesus was 
brought to the Temple there was in Jerusalem a man named 
Simeon. He was a just and devout man, the Bible says, 
Luke 2:25, and he was “looking for the consolation of 
Israel,” that is, he was hoping and praying for the coming 
of the Messiah, the Saviour of the Jews. We do not know 
any more about Simeon than just what is told us here, 
although many writers have tried to guess who he was. 
There were many men named Simeon in Jerusalem, and 
it is impossible to say surely whether or not he was 
any of those about whom we are told more in the history of 
the Jews at this time. 

It had been revealed to Simeon in some way that he 
should not die until he had seen the Christ, the Redeemer, 
and so God directed him through the Holy Spirit, to go to 
the Temple at the time when Jesus was brought there to 
fulfill the Law. In some way, too, Simeon recognized the 
fact that Jesus was the Messiah. He took him in his arms, 
and blessed him, and said some wonderful words which we 
sing nowadays in our churches, and named from the first 
words in Latin, the “ Nunc Dimittis,” just as we named the 
Benedictus and the Magnificat from their first words. Luke 
2:29-32. There are some words in Simeon’s song which 
concern you and me and all of us. He said: 


“Mine eyes have seen thy salvation, 
Which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples ; 
A light for revelation to the Gentiles, 
And the glory of thy people Israel.” 


Simeon knew in some way that Jesus was sent as the Re- 
deemer not only of the Jews, but of you and of me and of 
all the people of the world. 

There was another person in the Temple who saw the 
little party and was interested. This was an old, old woman, 
about eighty-four years of age—a widow named Anna, who 


34 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


spent her time in the Temple, fasting and praying. She, too, 
in some way, recognized the fact that the Baby Jesus was 
the Messiah; she, too, gave thanks, and told about him to all 
those. who were interested in the coming of the Messiah. 

How many people have we learned about, whom God had 
told in some way about the coming of the Messiah? ‘There 
were Mary and Joseph and Elisabeth and Zacharias; there 
were the shepherds out in the field; there were Simeon and 
Anna in the Temple. And they all told the good news of the 
coming of Jesus, we are sure, wherever they went. Yet no 
one seems to have paid very much attention to their story ; 
all the people of Jerusalem went on in the same way, doing 
their daily work, buying and selling, eating and sleeping. 
The priests in the Temple paid no attention. King Herod 
in his palace probably did not hear of what had happened. 
He carried out his wicked plans; he went on in his wicked 
ways. 

But something was soon to happen that would disturb 
even King Herod in his palace and the proud priests in the 
Temple, who, in spite of God’s messages, were paying no 
attention to the little Baby who had come to Mary of 
Nazareth. 


HANDWORK 


If you have started a model of the Temple, you may con- 
tinue your work on it, marking especially the Court of the 
Women, to which Jesus was taken when he was forty days 
old. Another thing that you might do, if you can letter well, 
would be to make an illumined copy of the Nunc Dimittis, 
either for your classroom, or for yourself. Take a sheet 
of rather heavy, rough drawing paper, and make a fancy 
letter for the first word of each line. Paint the letters any 
colors which seem pretty to you. 


NotTEBooK WorxK 


In your plan of the Temple put a cross to mark the Court 
of the Women, where the events of to-day’s lesson hap- 
pened. Enter in your notebook life of Christ the occur- 
rences of this lesson: “ Jesus given his name when he was 
eight days old, according to the direction of God to Joseph, 
Matthew 1:21.” “ Jesus taken to the Temple when he was 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 35 


forty days old.” “The words of Simeon, called ‘The Nunc 
DiMittise 7 The words of Anna, the prophetess.” 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


The next time that there is to be a service of baptism in 
your church, be sure to go. Notice carefully what is said in 
the service, and what the mothers and the fathers promise 
for themselves and for the little babies. You yourself are 
old enough to understand what they promised for you when 
you were babies. When you join the Church, you promise 
to try to do for yourself those things which they promised 
for you when you were baptized. 


Mrmory WorkK 
Learn the Nunc Dimittis. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE VISIT OF THE WISE MEN 
Matthew 2:1-18 
Memory VERSE 


“A light for revelation to the Gentiles, 
And the glory of thy people Israel.”—Luke 2 :32. 


THE LEsson STORY 


Jesus’ first visit to the Temple was over. Mary and 
Joseph carried him back to Bethlehem, where we think that 
they had found a house in which to stay. It must have 
seemed to them as the days passed, that in spite of the words 
of Simeon and Anna in the Temple, no one was paying any 
attention to the coming of the Baby King. 

But far away in the Fast, there were those who knew. In 
some way through a star, God told the good news to those 
who were glad to hear it—the Wise Men of the East. These 
men were what were called “ Magi” in those days—men 
who studied the stars, and who had all sorts of knowledge. 
These Wise Men hastened under the guidance of the star, 


36 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


to greet the Baby King. How they knew what the star 
meant we cannot tell; we only know the beautiful story as 
the Bible tells it. Matthew, chapter 2. 

Stories which have been told for many centuries say that 
there were three of these Wise Men, that they were kings, 
and that their names were Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar, 
that they rode on tall, white camels, over desert and moor 
and mountain, following the star till they came to Jerusalem. 
We are not sure of these things, but we do know that as 
they came into Jerusalem, they asked the question, “ Where 
is he that is born King of the Jews?” 

Herod in his palace, the priests in the Temple, had not 
been disturbed by the story of the poor shepherds, or by the 
rejoicing of Simeon and Anna, but when three Wise Men, 
richly dressed, laden with treasures, came through the streets 
of the city, they were disturbed. Herod was troubled; he 
had been a wicked king; he was getting old. Was a new 
king to take his place? He sent hastily for those who knew 
the Word of God; he asked where the Saviour should be 
born. The priests knew, for Micah, one of the prophets of 
the olden time had foretold it. They quoted this prophecy 
to the king: 


“And thou, Bethlehem, land of Judah, 
Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah: 
For out of thee shall come forth a governor, 
Who shall be shepherd of my people Israel.” 
—Matthew 2:6. 


Quickly Herod told the Wise Men. Then he showed what 
a crafty old man he was, for he said to them, “ When you 
have found the King, return and tell me so that I too may 
worship him,” 

Out of the city gates rode the Wise Men, along the road 
to Bethlehem, and when they reached the little village, the 
star led them straight to the house where the Baby Jesus 
was. How they rejoiced to find him! They knelt before 
him, and presented to him the gifts which in those days were 
given to kings—gold and frankincense and myrrh. They 
worshiped him and praised God for his goodness. And 
then—do you think that they obeyed the command of the 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 37 


crafty old king, and returned to him? No, indeed. They 
were truly Wise Men. God warned them'in a dream that 
they should not go back, and they returned to their own 
countries by another way. 
- But Herod was not satisfied. He had been much disturbed 
by the visit of the Wise Men. When they did not return, he 
grew more and more disturbed. Then a terrible plan entered 
his wicked old mind. He would get rid of the Baby King. 
He would see to it that he had no successor except his own 
sons. He sent orders through all Judea. Every baby bov 
under two years old was to be killed. His cruel order was 
carried out, and all the innocent little baby boys in the 
region were slain—the murder which has been called, in the 
history of the Church, “ The Slaughter of the Innocents.” 
But God took care of the Baby Jesus. He sent his angel 
to warn Joseph in a dream of the danger. Quickly Joseph 
awoke; he called Mary; they packed up their possessions 
and hurried off through the night, out of the land of the 
wicked Herod, to Egypt, three hundred miles away. So 
Jesus was saved, for God had taken care of him. 


Puttine THE Lesson IN?o THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


The Wise Men brought gifts to the Baby King. How can 
I bring gifts to him? Learn this little poem of Christina 
Rosetti’s, if you do not already know it. 


“What can I give him, 
Poor as I am? 
If I were a shepherd, 
I would bring a lamb, 
If I were a Wise Man, 
I would do my part— 
Yet what can I give him? 
Give him your heart.” 


Those who truly love God the Father and Jesus Christ 
his Son will worship him and serve him in every way that 
they can. We cannot offer gold and frankincense and myrrh, 
as did the Wise Men of old, but we can offer him love and 
service and praise—the gifts of our hearts. 

We can serve God in serving others, for Jesus himself 


38 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


told his disciples, “ Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these 
my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.” 


Tur Lesson TRutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Service. We can give to God and to Jesus 
the gift of a loving and thankful heart, and lives devoted to 
his service. Therefore: 

We will try to love and serve others, for in this way we 
can best please God. 


StorIEs WuicuH You May Rk&ap IN CONNECTION WITH 
Tuis Lesson 


“The Youngest King,” by Nassau. 

“The Three Kings of Cologne,” in ‘Good Stories for 
Great Holidays,” by Frances Jenks Olcott. 

“The Story of Jesus Christ,” by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps 
(Ward). 

“The Childhood of Jesus Christ,” by Henry van Dyke. 

“The Sad Shepherd,’ by Henry van Dyke. 

“The Little Gray Lamb,” in “ Stories for Sunday Tell- 
ing,” by Bailey. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
JESUS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD 


THE CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to give thanks to thee that 
Jesus our Saviour was sent to be a Light to lighten the 
Gentiles. We, too, want to spread the light of his story 


and to do what we can for the heathen who are still in the | 


darkness of ignorance. We thank thee for the blessings that 
we have, and particularly for those which have come to us 
because we live in a Christian land, where we know of 
Jesus the Saviour who came into the world, and lived and 
died for us and for all people. Amen. 


VERSES FOR UsE IN THE MEETING 
Numbers 24:17; Isaiah 9:6, 7; Daniel 12:3; Micah 5:2; 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 39 


Pevelation 2:28; Isaiah 60:1, 6; Psalm 72:10; Matthew 
5:14; John 5:14-16; 8:12. 


Hymns THat May Bg USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“We Three Kings of Orient Are.” 

“ What Child Is This?” 

“Wise Men from the East.” 

‘““We’ve a Story to Tell to the Nations.” 

“Sun of My Soul.” 

“The Whole World Was Lost in the Darkness of Sin.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. How can I show my thanksgiving to God for his best 
Gift to the world? 

2. What are some of God’s good gifts that I enjoy every 
day? 

3. What are some ways in which I can help to spread the 
light of Jesus? 

4. Christmas is the happiest time in the year. Why is 
this so? 

5. How can we keep the Christmas spirit through all the 
year? 

6. Who is meant by the “ Gentiles ”? 

7. How can my class show its love for God and for Jesus 
Christ? 

8. When Jesus was born, some people were glad, some 
were sorry, and some did not care. To which class do you 
belong? 


Topics FOR DIscUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. Blessings That Came to Simeon and Anna. Blessings 
That Come to Those Who Attend Church Regularly To- 
Day. 

2. Why the Wise Men Were Truly Wise. 

3.) The Light of the Gentiles. 

aye Christinase ll they car: 

5. Does Every Child Belong to God? 


CHAPTER V 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE LIFE OF A BOY IN NAZARETH 
Matthew 2:9-23; Hebrews 4:14, 15 


MeEmory VERSE 


“And the child grew, and waxed strong, filled with wis- 
dom: and the grace of God was upon him.”—Luke 2 :40. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Wicked King Herod was dead; even to the end of his life 
he was planning evil. He knew that the people of Palestine 
hated him, and he made up his mind that there should be 
mourning when he died, even if it were not for him. So he 
took prisoner a number of the leading Jewish citizens; he 
shut them up in the theater in the city of Jericho, and gave 
orders that as soon as his death was announced they should 
be killed. Of course his plan was not carried out. His heirs 
knew too well what would follow such a cruel act. | 

Herod was succeeded by his son Archelaus as king. Far 
off in Egypt, Joseph and Mary heard that Herod was dead. 
They came quickly back to Palestine, planning to return to 
Bethlehem. Before they reached it God told them not to 
return to the city of David, but to go to Nazareth, where 
Joseph and Mary had lived before the Baby Jesus was born. 

Nazareth was in Galilee, and Galilee was very different 
from Judea, where the city of Jerusalem and the town of 
Bethlehem were situated. Judea was a rocky, mountainous 
section of the country, where the soil was poor, except in a 
few places, of which the region around Bethlehem was one. 
The people of Judea were fond of learning and scholarship. 
There, in Jerusalem, the great rabbis, or teachers of the 
Jews, lived and taught. They despised the people of Galilee. 

Galilee was a very beautiful region. Its soil was rich and 
easily cultivated. Fruit and grain grew plentifully. There 


40 





JESUS IN THE WORKSHOP—F. sHieLps 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 41 


was the Sea of Galilee, with its beautiful scenery. There 
were many fish in the waters of this sea, and catching and 
drying them gave occupation to many people. The inhabi- 
tants of Galilee were happy and good-tempered; they were 
business men and traders. They were not scholars as were 
the people of Judea, and it is said that there was only one 
great rabbi who ever came from Galilee. 

The region around Nazareth itself can best be described 
as a saucer, a mile across, we are told, “full of fruit and 
flowers and sun, . . . a shallow, not a deep depression in 
the hills, the bottom of the saucer being probably a thousand 
feet above the sea; so that we have to imagine an upland 
hollow almost a perfect circle, the rim made of some thir- 
teen little hills, inclosing a fertile district a mile across, full 
of figs, olives, pomegranates, corn, and every sort of flower 
glowing in the bright Syrian sun. There are vines on all 
the hillsides . . . and in the ravines large mulberry trees 
and other vegetation. The flowers are really innumerable ; 
every field is full of them right up to the very rim of the 
saucer; and then, just at the top, there is a little bareness, 
where a sort of short heath grows on the higher summits. 

“Now, imagine, resting about halfway up on the northern 
slope of this hollow, with a southern aspect, a small and 
irregular gray village, and you see Nazareth.” 

Only about twenty minutes’ climb from Nazareth, there 
is a hill sixteen hundred feet above sea level. From this 
point very many of the places famous in the history of the 
Jews can be seen. At the west is the Mount Carmel range, 
where Elijah’s contest with the prophets of Baal took place. 
Beyond this lies the Mediterranean—the Great Sea, as the 
people of Palestine called it—with its ships that sailed to 
foreign regions. ‘To the north lies the wilder section of 
Galilee, and at a distance of sixty miles away rises snow-clad 
Mount Hermon. ‘To the east lies the Sea of Galilee, two 
thousand feet below, while beyond lie the hills of Perea. 

So many, many scenes of Israel’s history might have been 
seen by the Boy Jesus as he climbed the hills near little 
Nazareth—so many places which taught him to know and 
love his nation’s story. 

The house where tradition says that Jesus lived is to the 
right of Nazareth proper, while the carpenter’s workshop is 


42 JUNIOR (‘CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


in the middle of the business section of the town. To the 
east of the village is the fountain where all ang people of the 
village obtained their water supply. 

In this quiet little village, in the midst of this beautiful 
country, the Boy Jesus passed his days. The house he lived 
in was probably one of the white, flat-roofed houses, such as 
most of the people who were not rich lived in, in those days. 
It was simply furnished with rugs, stools, and tables. The 
beds were only rug mats, which were unrolled at night, but 
rolled up and put out of the way during the daytime. On 
the doorpost was the Mezuzah, the little box containing a 
folded parchment, with certain Scripture verses inside— 
Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:3-21, and the name of the Most 
High on the outside, visible through an opening in the box. 
This was touched reverently by each person who came into 
the house or went out. 

In Jesus’ babyhood, he must have followed his mother 
around as all babies do, as she did the housework. As he 
grew older he would learn about the rules which the Jewish 
people observed in the household—how the Sabbath meal 
was prepared, and how the Sabbath lamp was kindled, for 
instance, for there were very strict rules about all these 
things. As he got still larger he helped Mary in the house- 
hold duties in which a boy could help—he went to the well 
for water; he did the various errands for her; he learned as 
all children learn. 

Joseph, too, took part in Jesus’ education, for in Palestine 
it was considered a duty of great importance for a man to 
teach his son. As soon as a child could speak, his education 
began. He was to learn certain verses of the Bible, short 
prayers, and his “ birthday text ’—some verse of Scripture 
beginning or ending with, or at least containing the same 
letters as his Hebrew name. “ This guardian promise the 
child would insert in his daily prayers.’ 

At five or six years old, Jesus started to school in the 
synagogue, the church of the Jews. There the teachers and 
pupils all stood, or else sat on the ground in a semicircle, 
with the pupils facing the teacher. There they studied the 
Bible—as much of it as they had at that time—until they 
were ten years old; from ten to fifteen the Mishna, or in- 
terpretation of the Law of Moses, given by the rabbis, was 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 43 


the textbook. The study of the Bible began with the Book 
of Leviticus, and went on to the other parts of the books of 
Moses; then to the Prophets, and finally to that portion 
of the Old Testament not included in the Law and the 
Prophets—the Psalms, Proverbs, and so on. 

There are many stories not in the Bible which tell of the 
childhood of Jesus, but we are sure that most of these are 
untrue. All we can be sure of is that the home in, which he 
lived was a loving, God-worshiping home; that Mary and 
Joseph cared for him tenderly, and taught him in every way. 
Later there were other brothers and sisters in the house, and 
they must have played and studied and worked as other boys 
and girls do, for we know that the Bible tells us that Jesus 
was in all points like us, except that he was without sin. 


HANDWORK 


in connection with this lesson you might make a flat- 
roofed house, such as the houses of Nazareth were. A 
good-sized, square pasteboard box might be used as a foun- 
dation, with a door and several windows cut out. An out- 
side stairway can be made of cardboard, and a simple railing 
put around the roof. 


Map Work 


.nsert Nazareth on your map. If you are making a relief 
map of Palestine, note carefully the situation of this little 
city in the hills, and see if you can picture the situation as it 
is given in your lesson. 


NoteBook Work 


Enter in your notebook life of Christ the occurrences of 
this lesson. “ At the death of Herod, Mary and Joseph in- 
tended to take the Baby Jesus back to Bethlehem. They 
were warned by God not to do this, and so went to Nazareth. 
Matthew 2 :19-23.” 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITIES 


Think of some things that Jesus may have done for his 
mother and for Joseph and for his younger brothers and 


44 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 


sisters, when he was about as old as you are, as a boy in 
Nazareth. Of course you cannot do exactly the same things, 
but you can do your errands, and help mother to take care 
of your younger brothers and sisters, in the same spirit. 
You can be the kind of boy or girl that Jesus would have 
liked to play with. Try it this week, and all the year. 


Memory Work 


Review the three poems which you have learned in con- 
nection with your lessons so far—the Benedictus, the Mag- 
nificat, and the Nunc Dimittis. If there is any partyot 
which you are not sure, learn it perfectly. Perhaps your 
teacher will teach you the music to which some of these 
words have been set. A class choir would be fine. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
JESUS VISITS THE TEMPLE A SECOND TIME 
Luke 2 :40-52 


MeEmory VERSE 


“ And Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in favor 
with God and men.”—Luke 2:52. 


Tue Lesson STORY 


There was great excitement in the little white house in 
Nazareth where Jesus lived. He was twelve years old, and 
he was going to Jerusalem to the passover with Mary and 
Joseph, for he was now a “ Son of the law.” 

Joyous bands of pilgrims started out from Nazareth 
toward the great city eighty miles away. On the way they 
joined other pilgrims, all bound in the same direction, until 
there must have been thousands making their way toward 
Jerusalem. What pleasant times they had together as they 
picnicked along the road, or talked in the quiet twilight of 
the history of their people! 

At last they came to the city. They scattered among 
their friends and relatives, and all celebrated the passover 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 45 


feast. Read the directions given for this feast, many, many 
years before the time of Christ. Exodus, chapter 1Zioy che 
feast was a memorial, you know, of the time when the angel 
of death “ passed over ”’ the houses of the children of Israel 
when Pharaoh’s people were punished for their cruelty by 
the death of their first-born. Always the people of the Jews 
had kept the feast, and there were other times :n his life 
when we shall find Jesus going to Jerusalem to celebrate this 


So GasOll. 


The days of the celebration passed. The pilgrims from 
Nazareth started home. There were many of them, and 
they kept together for safety, for often there were robber 
bands hiding along the road, and a large company was less 
open to attack than straggling pilgrims would be. They had 
gone a day’s journey from Jerusalem when Joseph and Mary 
missed Jesus. ‘They probably thought at first that he was 
in another part of the company—that he was among their 
friends and relatives. They spent a second day hunting for 
him. He was such a reliable Boy—so good, so trustworthy. 
Some danger must have come to him, they thought. On the 
third day they returned to Jerusalem. And there they found 
him in the Temple, talking to the learned men, and listening 
to their wisdom. 

Mary had been worried, and she hurried up to him, asking 
him as any mother would: “ Where have you been? Your 
father and I have been hunting for you for three days.” 

Jesus’ answer shows that he was beginning to understand 
that he was God’s Son, and that he had a special mission in 
the world. “Did you not know that I must be in my 
Father’s house?” he asked. The time had come, as it comes 
to all true children of God, when he knew that there was 
a special task that God wanted him to do—only, with Jesus, 
there was a very special sense in which he knew that he was 
God’s Son, with a great task to perform. 

The Bible gives us just this one glimpse of the bevhond 
of the Boy Jesus. After that, he returned to Nazareth, 
where he lived quietly in the home of Joseph and Mary, 
obeying them, and being a respectful and loving Son. He 
learned to be a carpenter, as Joseph was. Joseph probably 
died during this time, for he is not mentioned after this, 
and Jesus may have had to support his mother and the 


46 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


family of younger brothers and sisters until they became old 
enough to help themselves. He must have thought and 
prayed and done his duty in every way, planning to be ready 
when God called him to service. 

God wants all of us to be his obedient children. We all 
are called to serve him and to love him. And we can do this 
best just as Jesus did. We can be obedient to our parents, 
we can be kind and loving to others, and we can love God 
with all our hearts. Then we, too, shall grow in favor with © 
God and men, and the Holy Spirit will be with us, as we 
try to be the kind of boy or girl that Jesus would have liked 
to play with, when he himself was a Boy. 


Puttinc THE Lesson INtTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. God wants his children of to-day to know that he is 
their Father, and to acknowledge this publicly. You do this 
when you join the Church. Have you thought about mak- 
ing the decision to do this? 

2. You are about the same age that Jesus was at the 
time of this lesson. You can try to act as he would have 
acted if he had been in your place. You can love God and 
your parents and relatives and friends, and you can show 
this by being obedient to your parents, generous and fair 
to your playmates, honest and industrious in your school 
work, regular, punctual, and reverent in your attendance at 
church and Sunday school. 

3. Jesus felt that the Temple was his Father’s house. 
Do you love the church and the Sunday school, and feel 
that they belong to you? 


Tue Lesson TrutH ExprEssED IN A LAW 


The Law of Obedience to God. ‘Those who love God 
and Jesus will try to be obedient to them. We can find out 
God’s will for us by reading God’s Word, and by listening 
to those who have studied it. Therefore: 

I will read my Bible, and study the lessons from it. 

I will listen to the teachers and preachers who tell me 
what God’s Word says. 

I will try to do those things which I learn are right. 


JUNTORTCAHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 47 


Books To READ WITH THIS LESSON 


“The Childhood of Jesus,” by Van Dyke. 
“The Lost Boy,” by Van Dyke. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


THE CLAss PRAYER 
Our Father in heaven, we are almost the same age that 
Jesus was when he went to the Temple. We want to be like 
him, and to be the kind of children that he would have 
liked. Help us to be obedient and generous and kind, and 
to grow in favor with God and men. May the Holy Spirit 
rest upon us, too. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


I John 3:1, 2; 5:2; Matthew 5:9, 44, 45; Romans 8:14; 
0-26: Galatians 3:20. 


Hymns THat May Bs UsEp IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“Children of the Heavenly King.” 

“ Ye Fair Green Hills of Galilee.” 
“Thou That Once on Mother’s Knee.” 
“Jesus in the Temple.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


If Jesus were a boy to-day in my school: 

1. Would he copy an arithmetic problem from some one 
else? 

2. What would he do if the teacher thought he had 
whispered, when it was really some one else? 

3. What would he do if some of the other boys wanted 
him to “ play truant’? 

4. What would he do if he broke a school window by 
accident ? 

5. What part would he take if the boys were quarreling 
over a football game? 

6. Would he “ tell tales” ? 

7. Would he be punctual and attentive? 

8. Would he know his lessons? 


48 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


‘Topics For Discussion or REPORTS 


A Birthday Text for Myself. 

The Kind of Junior Jesus Would Like Me to Be. 
How a Junior Can Be Like Jesus at Home. 

How a Junior Can Be Like Jesus in School. 

How a Junior Can Be Like Jesus in Church. 

The Passover and What It Meant. 

Why We Do Not Have the Passover Nowadays. (Go 
back to Chapter II, and perhaps you can answer this ques- 
tion. Also read I Corinthians 5 D7 4) 


PSA melee Nem 


GA BASE Rear 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE BAPTISM OF JESUS 
Luke 3:1-22 
MrMmory VERSE 


“For this is he that was spoken of through Isaiah the 
prophet, saying, 


The voice of one crying in the wilderness, 
Make ye ready the way of the Lord, 
Make his paths straight.”—-Matthew 3:3. 


Tue Lisson SToRY 


The quiet days at Nazareth passed by. Jesus grew to 
manhood, helping to support his mother and brothers and 
sisters, attending the synagogue services, doing his duty 
in every way. 

In the meantime another boy had been growing up in 
the southern part of Palestine—south even of the great 
city of Jerusalem—John, the son of the good priest Zach- 
arias and his wife Elisabeth. Probably Zacharias and 
Elisabeth had died when John was a mere lad, for they 
were old people when he was born, you remember. We 
are sure, however, that before they died they must have 
told John something of the wonderful events that had 
happened at the time when he was born—of the appear- 
ance of the angel to Zacharias in the ‘Temple, how his 
father became dumb, why he was given the name “ John.” 
At any rate John knew the old prophecies about the fore- 
runner, and he knew that he was the forerunner of the 
Messiah promised by God through the prophets. Malachi , 
3:1; 4:5; Isaiah 40:3. He seems to have grown up with- 
out having known Jesus, although their mothers had 
loved each other so dearly. Perhaps the two boys had 
never seen each other at all, or perhaps only when they 


49 


50 JUNTORSCHURCH SCHOOLMALESSONS 


were little children, so that John did not at first recognize 
Jesus after he had grown up. John 1:31, 33. 

For some reason John left the hill country of Judea 
where his parents had lived, and went into the wild, 
desert region east of the Jordan. When he and Jesus 
were about thirty years old—you remember that John 
was six months older than Jesus—John appeared by the 
Jordan River, and began to preach. 

John was a striking figure. He wore a garment of 
rough camel’s hair, and a leather girdle about his waist. 
His food consisted only of the wild honey of the desert, 
and the locusts which were often used for food. His mes- 
sage was a message of repentance. “ Make ye ready the 
way of the Lord, make his paths straight,” he cried. All 
classes of people came to hear him, first those from near 
by, who are always interested by something new and 
different, came; then came those from farther away, rich 
and poor, soldiers and priests, Pharisees and Romans, 
until, the Bible tells us, all the land of Judea and the 
people from Jerusalem came to him. Mark 1:5. John 
had a message for each of them. ‘To the tax collectors he 
said, “ Take no more money from the people than that 
which is rightfully due you.” To the soldier he gave the 
advice not to be violent, and not to accuse others wrong- 
fully, to be content with his wages. And to all he ad- 
vised generosity—they were to share food and clothing 
with others. 

John preached earnestly as God directed him. ‘The 
people crowded about him, for they thought that per- 
haps he was the Messiah whom they expected. But John 
denied this, “1 am not the Messiah,’’he said: ““lsam 
just a forerunner. He is so much greater than I am, that 
I am not worthy even to unfasten his shoes. I baptize 
with water, but he shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit. 
He will separate you—the good from the bad—as the 
wheat and the chaff are separated by the thresher.” 

Suddenly one day as John was preaching, a wonderful 
thing happened. A new figure appeared among those 
who were listening to the great preacher. It was Jesus, 
the Carpenter of Nazareth, who had come from Galilee 
down to the Jordan. He asked John to baptize him; 


JUNIORACHURGHESCHOOLUHSSONS 51 


John did not want to do this, saying that he should 
rather be baptized by Jesus. There must have been 
something majestic and striking in the figure of the 
Carpenter, for John seems to have seen something re- 
markable about him, even though he did not know at first 
that he was the Messiah. 

John baptized Jesus as he wished, and as the rite was 
concluded, the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove de- 
scended upon Jesus, and a voice from heaven said, “ Thou 
art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.” 

It is supposed by many people that Jesus and John 
were alone at the time of the baptism, or, if there were 
other people near, that the vision of the Holy Spirit and 
the sound of the voice came only to them. It would be 
interesting to know how John felt and what he did after 
Tesus’ baptism. What happened to Jesus we know, for 
the Bible tells us. Mark 1:12,138. “ And straightway the 
Spirit driveth him forth into the wilderness. And he 
was . . .. tempted of Satan; and he was with the wild 
beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.” 

We learned in Chapter Il how John received his name, 
and in Chapter IV how Jesus received his name, which 
was something like part of our baptism. Besides the 
giving of names, the ceremony of Christian baptism of 
children includes, too, the promise of parents that they 
will try to teach their child to know and love and obey 
God. ‘The water used in baptism represents the Holy 
Spirit who cleanses our hearts and fits us to live for 
God and to serve him. 

Jesus had always been the Son of God, but at his bap- 
tism the Holy Spirit in a special sense descended upon 
him and a voice came from heaven which told him that 
he was God’s beloved Son. These were signs that his 
real work for God—to save the people of the world from 
sin—was about to begin. 


HANDWORK 


You are going to have on Sunday one of Jesus’ par- 
ables. In preparation for that lesson get two old tin pie 
plates if mother will lend them to you. Inside one of 
these put a foundation of sand, about two inches high, 


52 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


and three inches square. Make this just as solid as you 
can. See if you can find a flat stone, or perhaps a flat 
piece of concrete about the same size as your sand foun- 
dation, to put in the other pie plate. You can pretend 
that a square piece of wood is a rock, if you cannot find a 
stone. If you can get_some empty safety-match boxes— 
a dozen will do—you can build a house on each founda- 
tion, using four boxes for the sides and two for the tops 
of each house. You can use building blocks, if you pre- 
fer. Then slowly fill both pie plates with water, pretend- 
ing that there is a flood—and see what happens to your 
houses. Be ready to tell your teacher about this on 
Sunday. 


NoteBook Work 


Put in your notebooks the events of this lesson: “ John. 
the Forerunner, Comes to the Jordan ”; “ The Baptism of 
Jesus’; “ Jesus Begins His Ministry.” 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


The next time a baby is baptized in your church, note 
carefully what the baby’s mother and father promise. 
Perhaps you can find and read the baptismal service in 
“The Book of Common Worship.” Think about the 
promises made. You are old enough now to help in car- 
rying them out. Are you doing this? - 


Mermory Work 


Learn the words which God spoke at the baptism of 
Jesus. Matthew 3:17. 





SUNDAY SESSION 
THE TWO FOUNDATIONS 
Matthew 7:16-29 


Mrmory VERSE 


“ Every one therefore that heareth these words of mine, 
and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man, who 


\ 0 
> ve 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 53 


built his house upon the rock: and the rain descended, 
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon 
that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon the 
rock.” —Matthew 7:24, 25. 


Tur Lesson SToRY 


The greatest sermon that has ever been preached is 
Jesus’ “ Sermon on the Mount.” In this he taught many 
wonderful lessons to the people of the world. We are to 
study a part of this sermon to-day—a part which shows 
by a story how we can lay the best foundations for our 
lives. 

John the Baptist had taught the people of the Jews that 
they must repent of their sins and try to do right—they 
were to prepare for the Messiah. When Jesus came he 
showed them that in order to live the right kind of lives 
they must believe on him—that belief was the first and 
most important thing in their lives. 

Jesus told the story of two houses—one built on a 
foundation of rock, the other on a foundation of sand. 
In Palestine there are two seasons—the dry season and 
the wet season. Sometimes there is a piece of land that 
looks perfectly safe in the dry season, but that is flooded 
when the rains of the wet season come and fill the river 
beds so that they overflow. A house built on one of these 
river beds is unsafe. Often it is washed away. A wise 
man would never build a house on the sandy bed of a 
river bank, where the floods might reach it. He would 
build on a safe foundation. 

Some years ago there was a house at the seashore. It 
was so close to the ocean that when the tide was high it 
was impossible to go down the front steps from the porch. 
It was fine that summer to be so near the ocean, but by 
the next summer something had happened. ‘There had 
been a great storm, and the whole house had tipped. The 
floors of the rooms were slanted; one side was several feet 
higher than the other; the front porch was gone entirely, 
and it seemed best to tear down the whole house. It had 
been built on the sand; the rains had descended and the 
floods had come—and great had been the fall thereof. 


54 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


t is just that way with our lives. If we lay a good 
foundation we can raise a good, strong building; if we 
have a poor foundation, our building is unsafe, no matter 
what the upper part may be. And the only safe founda- 
tion on which to build our lives is faith in Jesus and 
obedience to him. If we love and trust him and try to 
obey and serve him, we have a good foundation on which 
LOnStarl. 

Boys and girls are laying the foundations of their lives. 
You want to make that foundation firm and strong. Let 
Jesus Christ be the chief Corner Stone of your foundation. 
Then lay the stones of truth and generosity and faith, and 
all the other good things of character. Begin while you 
are just boys and girls, and when you are men and 
wotnen, if you have laid no poor stones in building your 
life, you will find yourself safe and happy and successful. 
But start your building on the solid rock, and not on the 
unsafe sand. 


AN UNSAFE FOUNDATION 


St. Mark’s is a very famous church in the city of Venice 
in Italy. It was built over a thousand years ago, and has 
become one of the most noted buildings in the world. 
The men who planned St. Mark’s constructed a Campan- 
ile, or bell tower, where the bells of the church were rung, 
three hundred and fifty feet high. This Campanile was 
finished in the year A.p. 888. Year after year the bells 
rang out and called the people to worship. Year after 
year visitors went to the church from all over the world. 
And then, on July 14, 1902, the tower suddenly fell with 
a crash like an earthquake. Its foundations, laid over a 
thousand years before, had been unsafe, and so the tower 
crumbled into a heap of dust, leaving behind it nothing 
but a memory. 


PuTTING THE Lesson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Some of the false foundation stones upon which we can 
build our lives are pride, untruth, insincerity, careless- 
ness, disobedience. Are you laying any one of these 
foundation stones? If you are, take it out, and put ina 
good stone instead. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS a0 


Christ and his truth are the foundation stones on which 
we can safely build our lives. Then find good stones to 
place on a good Foundation—truth, honor, temperance, 
love, hope, faith. See how many other good stones you 
can think of. 

John the Baptist was preparing a foundation. His first 
stone was repentance. If we have harmed anyone we can 
tell him that we are sorry, and try to make up for the 
wrong. 


THE Lesson TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Right Building. Every day Junior boys 
and girls are building character. Fach day adds a stone 
to our life building. Therefore: 

Let us be sure that all the stones that we use in our 
building for character foundations are good, square 
stones, which will give our character tower a chance to 
last longer than the thousand years which the Campanile 
of St. Mark’s lasted—that is, forever. 


Mrmory Work 


Learn this verse of a familiar hymn, if you do not al- 
ready know it: 


“My hope is built on nothing less 
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness; 
I dare not trust the sweetest framie, 
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name. 

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; - 
All other ground is sinking sand.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


De eerOuUN DATION WHICH CAN AY LOR 
MY LIFE 


Tuer CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, help us to lay a good foundation 
for the building of our lives. Let us build on Jesus 
Christ, our Lord. We love him and trust him, and will 


56 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


try to obey him. And on this good foundation may we 
build with good stones, a building not made with hands, 
which will last forever. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Deuteronomy 32:4;~Psalms 19:14; 28:1; 61:2; 95:1; 
I Corinthians 39-17; 1024° Isaiah’26 -4) Matthewalorice 


Hymns Tuat May Bg UsEp IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“The Church’s One Foundation.” 
“Rock of Ages.” 

“O God, the Rock of Ages.” 

“ How Firm a Foundation.” 

“My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less.” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Tell what you can of the foundation which John the 
Baptist laid for the coming of the Messiah. 

2. How did God show that he approved of Jesus’ work 
in the world? 

3. What was John’s message to the soldiers; to the 
tax collectors? Were these messages good foundation 
stones? 

4. What is the best foundation stone on which to build 
our lives? 

5. How can we lay this foundation stone? 

6. Name some stones which will be good to lay on the 
foundation stone. 


‘Topics FOR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


Some of the Promises Made When I Was Baptized. 
How Can I Fulfill These Promises? 

Good and Bad Foundations. 

Good and Bad Building Stones. 


oo Bo 


GARD BR SV LT 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
ee TR POL LOW DRS. ® By lho Ss 
John 1:29-49 


MrEmory VERSE 


“ Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of 
the world! ”’—John 1 :29b. 


Tuer Lesson Story 


For forty days and forty nights Jesus was in the wilder- 
ness, where he was tempted by the Devil to do his will. 
But Jesus would not give in to Satan. He answered the 
Tempter by quoting from the Bible, and at the end of the 
time Satan departed, defeated. Then angels came to 
Jesus and ministered to him. 

During these forty days when Jesus was in the wilder- 
ness, John continued baptizing those who came to him at 
the Jordan. About this time priests and Levites came to 
him from Jerusalem, asking him who he was. “I am not 
the Christ,” he said, “and I am not Elijah.” 

“Who art thou?’ they asked again. “ What sayest 
thou of thyself?” 

John answered in the words of Isaiah the prophet. 
Isaiah 40:3. “ I am the voice of one crying in the wilder- 
ness, Make straight the way of the Lord.” 

“Why do you baptize people if you are not the 
Christ?” the Pharisees asked next. 

“T baptize in water,” John said. “In the midst of you 
standeth one whom ye know not, even he that cometh 
after me.” 

The next day Jesus returned from the wilderness. 
John saw him coming. “ Behold, the Lamb of God, that 
taketh away the sin of the world!” he said. “ This is he 


37 


58 JUNTORSCHURCHISCHOOLSEESsOn.s 


of whom I said, After me cometh a man who is become 
before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not; 
but that he should be made manifest to Israel, for this 
cause came | baptizing in water. . . . I have beheld 
the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven; and it 
abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent 
me to baptize in water, he said unto me, Upon whomso- 
ever thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and abiding 
upon him, the same is he that baptizeth in the Holy Spirit. 
And I have seen, and have borne witness that this is the 
Son of God.” 

You would think, would you not, that after this testi- 
mony of John, everyone that heard would have known 
that Jesus was the Messiah? But they did not. We do 
not know that anyone believed after that first testimony. 
But on the next day, as John was standing with two of 
his disciples, Jesus came down to the Jordan again, and 
John repeated the same words, “ Behold, the Lamb of 
God.” 

This time two disciples followed Jesus as he went 
away. He turned and saw them, asking, “ What seek 

Cia 

“Where do you live, Master?” they asked, answering 
his question by another question, and Jesus answered 
simply, “ Come and see.” 

Probably Jesus was staying in one of the booths made 
by the interweaving of branches of palm, or brushwood, 
which the people of Palestine so often used as temporary 
dwelling places. The two disciples followed him to this 
place, and entered with him. “It was about the tenth 
hour,” the Bible tells us, and as six o’clock was the first 
hour according to the reckoning of the Jews, you can 
easily see that this must have been about four o’clock in 
the afternoon. For the rest of the day they stayed with 
him, and talked. We can imagine that Jesus told them 
many, many things, and that they trusted him right away, 
for after that they were his loyal followers. 

One of those disciples who first followed Jesus, the 
Gospel of John tells us, was Andrew; the name of the 
other is not told us, but as John, the author of the Gospel, 
never mentions his own name, we are led to think that he 


JONIOR, CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 59 


was the second disciple. Now we have two Johns in our 
story—John the Baptist, and John the disciple. Be care- 
ful not to get them confused. 

Andrew and John immediately began to spread the 
light of Jesus’ doctrine, for the Bible tells us that Andrew 
“ findeth first his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, 
We have found the Messiah.” When Andrew brought 
Simon Peter to Jesus, Jesus knew at once that this man 
would make the kind of disciple that he wanted, and he 
greeted him with the words, “Thou are Simon the son of 
John: thou shalt be called Cephas.” (Cephas is much the 
same as Peter, for both words mean “rock.” “Cephas” 
is Greek ; “ Peter” is Latin.) 

On the next day Jesus, accompanied by his three fol- 
lowers, John, Andrew, and Peter, started toward Galilee, 
where they all lived. Jesus, you remember, probably still 
lived in Nazareth of Galilee; Peter and Andrew, and also 
John, lived in Bethsaida, which is also in Galilee. On 
their journey they met another man from Bethsaida—a 
man named Philip. Jesus himself spoke to Philip, and 
commanded him, “ Follow me.” Philip was the fourth 
disciple. 

Philip, too, began to spread the news of the coming of 
the Messiah, for he found his brother Nathanael, and told 
him of Jesus. When Nathanael did not at first believe, 
Philip simply said, “ Come and see.” And when Nathan- 
ael did come to Jesus, Jesus greeted him with words that 
proved to Nathanael that he was the Messiah, for he at 
once told him something about himself—that he was an 
honorable man, and, when Nathanael asked him how he 
knew this, he said that he had seen Nathanael before 
Philip called him, when he was under the fig tree. So it 
came about that Nathanael became one of the first five 
disciples—Andrew and John and Peter and Philip and Na- 
thanael. The light had begun to spread. First there was 
only John the Baptist who believed. He led Andrew and 
the disciple John to belief. Andrew brought Simon Peter. 
Then Jesus himself called Philip, and Philip persuaded 
Nathanael to “ come and see.” Nathanael believed, too, 
and began to spread the light in his turn. Jesus was the 
great Light, from which all the other lights were kindled. 


60 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


HANDWORK 


For this lesson you might build a “ booth,” such as 
Jesus may have been staying in at the time when Andrew 
and John first talked with him. Get some leafy twigs 
and branches, and weave them together to make a sort 
of hut. Put a piece ef cloth over the top, for the people 
often spread their cloaks on the branches as an extra 
protection. It will be interesting to make for your note- 
book a clock that you can use to compare the time as the 
Jews told it, with our time. Make a circle, and draw 
twelve lines from the center to the edge. Where the lines 
cross the circumference, put the figures denoting the 
hours from one to twelve, putting twelve at the top, and 
six at the bottom, as our clocks are marked. ‘Then make 
a larger circle outside the first, and extend the straight 
lines to the edge of this second circle. The place that 
was marked twelve o'clock in the first circle should be 
marked “the sixth hour” in the outer circle, as the Jews 
divided the day into twelve hours from sunrise to sunset, 
and our twelve o’clock was the sixth hour of the Jewish 
day. Beginning with that, eleven o’clock of our time, was 
the fifth hour, one o’clock was the seventh hour, two 
o'clock was the eighth hour, and soon. What time would 
the tenth hour, mentioned in our lesson, be? The 
Romans told time as we do, counting from midnight until 
midnight. Some people think that John in his Gospel 
used Roman time. If so, the tenth hour would be ten 
o'clock in the morning. If you keep this diagram, and 
paste it in the back of your notebook, you will find that 
it is useful many times in the course of your lessons. 


NoteBook WorkK 


Enter in your Notebook Life of Christ what you know 
about the first five followers of Jesus. See if you can find 
out the names of the places where they lived. You will 
find some of these in John 1:29-49, your lesson material. 
Perhaps you would like to keep an outline of the things 
that you learn about these disciples in another part of 
your notebook. Begin about the middle and take a sepa- 
rate sheet for each disciple. Head the sheet with the 
name like this: (Fill in the blanks, yourself.) 


PUNTORSCHUURCHYSGHOOL LESSONS 61 


ANDREW 


Andrew was first a follower of the Daptistamrie 
lived in , and was one of the first two disciples to 
follow Jesus. The first thing that he did ‘after he accepted 
Jesus, was to bring his brother, , to the Messiah. 











JOHN 





John was also a follower of the Baptist. He 
lived in and was one of the first two followers of 
Jesus. 





PETER 
His other names were 





Peter was the brother of 
and 








PEIpIP 


Jesus himself called Philip to be his follower. Philip 
lived in The first thing that Philip did was to 
bring as a disciple to Jesus. 

You can continue these outlines as you go on with your 
course of study. 








EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Do you know any boys and girls who do not go regu- 
larly to Sunday school? See if you cannot follow the 
example of Jesus’ first followers, and bring them to hear 
about him. 


Mrmory Work 
Learn the words of John 1:29, 30. 


Hymns THAT CoRRELATE WITH THE LESSON 


“ Follow Thou Me, Is the Master’s Word.” 
“© Master, Let Me Walk with Thee.” 
“The Son of God Goes Forth to War.” 
“ Jesus Calls Us.” 
“Lead on, O King Eternal.” 
“O Jesus, I Have Promised.” 
“Who Will My Disciple Be?’ 
“ True-Hearted, Whole-Hearted.” 


62 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


SUNDAY SESSION 


AMEND Hey Mawa elo )0, 1Ohe) Abiebs, SON E(k 
Matthew 13:1-23; Luke 8:1-15 


MEMorRY VERSE 


= 


“Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.”— 
James 1 :22a. 


Tuer Lesson Story 


Some time had passed since Jesus had begun to teach 
and to preach. He had performed many miracles, and 
had won many people to faith in him. One beautiful day 
Jesus was near the Sea of Galilee. A great crowd had 
gathered about him. The sloping hillside rising from the 
sea was beautiful in the sunshine, and in the distance 
Jesus could probably see a man working in the field, per- 
haps sowing seed as they sow it in Palestine—a man with 
a bag across his shoulder, from which he took handfuls 
of seed which he scattered over the ground. 

There was such a crowd near by that Jesus took one 
of the boats that was on the shore—perhaps it belonged 
to Peter, who was a fisherman—and, pushing a httle way 
from the beach, spoke to the crowd from the boat, as if it 
were a pulpit. The story which he told is one of the 
stories with a meaning which we call a “parable.” Jesus 
often taught by means of parables, but this story which 
we are to study to-day is the only parable whose meaning 
he himself explains. It is called the parable of the Sower. 

In Palestine farming is not at all like that which we 
know. In Galilee the land is rich and fertile, but in most 
parts of the country the soil is rocky and full of stones. 
(Do you remember the story of the bag of stones, given 
on page 4?) ‘The soil, which is often clayey, packs down 
in the dry season hard and solid. As the sower went 
through the field, sowing his seed, Jesus told the people, 
some of the seed fell by the wayside in the hard-packed, 
clay footpath. Of course that seed did not have a chance 
to grow. The birds came and devoured it. Some of the 


JUNTORSCHURGCMSSCHOOLILESSONGS 63 


seed fell in spots where the soil was not deep. This seed 
quickly sprang up, but because there was no depth to the 
earth, it soon withered. Some other seed fell among 
thorns, and as soon as the plants grew, the thorns choked 
them. ‘The fourth part of the seed grew and brought 
forth grain—some a hundred times what had been 
planted, some sixty times, and some thirty times. 

A little later the disciples came to Jesus, and asked him 
the meaning of his parable and’ he told them. “The 
seed,” he said, “is the Word of God: and those by the 
wayside are they that have heard; then cometh the Devil, 
and taketh away the word from their heart, that they may 
not believe and be saved. That seed which fell in the 
shallow soil stands for those who hear gladly, and believe 
for a while, but who fall away quickly in time of tempta- 
tion. ‘The seed which is choked by thorns stands for the 
people who allow the cares and troubles of the world to 
make them forget God, so that they do not do his will. 
But the fourth part of the seed, that which fell in good 
ground, stands for those who are doing God’s will, and 
who are really his children.” 

Jesus’ story of the Sower is a story that we all can un- 
derstand, even when we are only Juniors. When you go 
to church and hear an interesting sermon, what do you 
do? Do you forget what the minister has said, before the 
last hymn has been sung? ‘Then you are like the seed 
sown in the first kind of ground. Do you say to yourself, 
“T’ll try to do as God wants me to do this week,” and then 
when the first little crisscross thing happens, forget all 
about it and say, “ That’s too much trouble, I won't”? 
Then you are like the second kind of ground—your good 
resolutions were scorched by temptation. Do you plan 
to do all sorts of good things while the minister is talk- 
ing, and then think so hard about the dress that you are 
going to wear to Bessie’s party, or the score of the foot- 
ball game, that you forgot all your good resoluticns? 
Then you are like the thorny ground. But if you really 
carry out your good resolutions and try to be an obedient 
child of God, you are like the good ground in which the 
seed that was sown grew and produced fruit thirty- or 
sixty- or a hundredfold. 


64 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL EESSOND 


Puttinc THE Lesson Into tHe LiFe OF THE CLASS 


Be ready to listen to the words of the Bible, to the 
words of your parents and teachers; try to make your 
heart good soil, prepared for good seed. 

If you make your heart and mind ready to receive the 
eood seed, you will find that the good seed produces good 
fruit. 

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffer- 
ing, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self- 
control.” 


THE LEsson TrRuTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Attention. We can learn God’s will for us 
only by listening to the teachings of those who speak for 
him, and tell us the message of his word. Therefore: 

We will have hearts and minds ready to receive the 
messages which God sends to us. 





EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


Tue CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to be thy followers as 
Andrew and John and Peter and Philip and Nathanael 
were—true and faithful unto thee. We cannot hear thee 
speak exactly as they did, through thy Son, Jesus, but we 
can hear thee speak through thy Word, the Bible, and 
through our teachers and preachers who speak for thee. 
Help us to make our hearts good soil ready to receive thy 
word. Let us not be tempted to forget thy teachings, so 
that the seed is like that sown by the wayside. Let us 
not be so careless that the seed is like that sown in the 
soil without depth. Let us not be so pleasure-loving that 
it is choked by other things. But let our hearts be good 
soil, so that the good seed may produce a hundrediold. 
For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 
Matthew 7:16; Psalms 119:11; 126:6; Jeremiah 


PUNO heCiUnRe Ho CHOOLSRESSONS 65 


d2:17-19; John 15:16; Galatians 5:22, 23; 6:6-10; Ephe- 
sians 3: 16- 19; Colossians 1:6; I Peter 1:23; Mark 4 :1-20. 


Hymns THat May Bes USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“What Shall the Harvest Be?” 

“ We Plow the Fields, and Scatter.” 

“Almighty God, Thy Word Is Cast Like Seed Upon 
the Ground.” 

“We Are Reapers.” 

“ Hark! the Voice of Jesus Crying.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


What were the names of Jesus’ first followers? 
In what way can we be like these men? 
In what way can we follow the example of Andrew? 
In what way can we follow the example of Philip? 
What do you know about farming in Palestine? 
Tell what you can about the various kinds of soil in 
the ‘parable. 

7. Which kind of soil are you going to try to be? 


D> Ors 909 20 HA 


Topics For Discussion or REPORTS 


1. The Kinds of Fruit a Christian Boy or Girl Can 
Produce. 

2. Sowing Wild Oats. 

3. The Fruit of the Spirit. 

4. How I Can Bea Follower of the First Disciples. 

5. The Kind of Follower Jesus Wants Me to Be. 

6. The Kind of Fruit Jesus Wants Christian Boys and 
Girls to Produce. 


CHAPTER VIII 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
JESUS BEGINS HIS MINISTRY 
John, chapter 2 
Memory VERSE 
“ Whatsoever he saith unto you, do fo ass faltv ay 


Tur LEssoN STORY 


Jesus had left the region near the Jordan, where he had 
been baptized, and was going toward Galilee. Probably 
the disciples whom he had already chosen were with him 
—Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, and Nathanael. On the 
third day he came to Cana of Galilee. It happened that 
there was a wedding in Cana—probably the wedding of 
one of Jesus’ relatives, or at least a close friend of the 
family, for Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his 
disciples were asked as guests. 

A wedding in Palestine is a time of great joy. ‘The 
festivities last for almost a week, and there is much mirth 
and festivity. “ On the evening of the actual marriage,” 
we are told, “ the bride was led from her paternal home to 
that of her husband. First came the merry sounds of 
music; then they who distributed among the people wine 
and oil, and nuts among the children; next the bride, cov- 
ered with the bridal veil, her long hair flowing, sur- 
rounded by her companions, and led by ‘the friends of 
the’ bridegroom.’ .\.'. All around: wereminwiective 
array; some carried torches, or lamps on poles; those 
nearest had myrtle branches and chaplets of flowers. 
Iveryone rose to salute the procession, or join it; and it 
was deemed almost a religious duty to break into praise 
of the beauty, the modesty, or the virtues of the bride. 
Arrived at her new home, she was led to her husband. 
Some such formula as ‘ Take her according to the Law of 


66 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 67 


Mogses and of Israel,’ would be spoken, and bride and 
bridegroom crowned with garlands.” ‘Then a formal legal 
document was signed, and after the washing of hands and 
the benediction, the marriage supper began. “ Entering 
the spacious, lofty dining room, which would be bril- 
liantly lighted with lamps and candlesticks, the guests 
would be seated on couches, soft with cushions, or cov- 
ered with tapestry, or seated on chairs. The bridal bless- 
ing would then be spoken and the feast would proceed, 
under the direction of the ‘ruler of the feast.’ ” 

But at this wedding there must have been unexpected 
guests—perhaps Jesus and his five disciples were among 
those who had not been planned for. At any rate, the 
supply of refreshments was exhausted. Mary seems to 
have known this, and she came to Jesus, saying, “ They 
have no wine.” Jesus answered her in a way that satis- 
fied her, for she turned to the servants and said, “ What- 
soever he saith unto you, do it.” 

There were standing near the door of the house six 
large waterpots of stone. The Jews were very particular 
about purification and washings. It was necessary for 
those entering the house to wash; they had to wash their 
hands before eating, and at many other times. Because 
there were many guests at the wedding there were more 
water jars than usual at the door, and they were unusu- 
ally large. Probably the host and hostess had borrowed 
from their neighbors. 

After Mary had spoken to the servants, Jesus told them 
to fill up the jars with water. They filled them to the 
brim. Then Jesus said, “Take the contents now, and 
carry it to the ruler of the feast.” They obeyed him; the 
ruler tasted the water, but it had become wine—such 
good wine that he thought it better than what had been 
served at the beginning of the feast, when it was custom- 
ary to serve the best. 

The Bible tells us that this was the beginning of the 
signs which Jesus did in Galilee, and that his disciples 
believed more and more on him. 

Shortly after this the time of the passover came, and 
Jesus went to Jerusalem for the feast. There he drove 
out from the Temple those who were buying and selling 


68 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


in the courts, instead of worshiping, and showed by 
many signs that he was the Son of God. For the first 
time since he became a man, he declared in Jerusalem 
that he was God’s Son. 

From Jerusalem Jesus went into other parts of Judea, 
and then he returned to Galilee, where he performed 
many signs, or miracles. He preached at his home city, 
Nazareth, where the people rejected him, and then finally 
went to live in Capernaum, which was afterwards called 
“his own city.” 


HANDWORK 

For this lesson look at your picture of the Temple plan, 
and mark the Court of the Gentiles, where the buyers and 
sellers whom Jesus drove out had their places. How 
inany times that we know of had Jesus visited the 
Temple? 

NorEeBooK WorkK 

Enter the events of this lesson in your outline life of 

Christ. 
E,XPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Try to do willingly this week everything that you can 
to help in household duties. Remember that the first 
miracle of Jesus of which the Bible tells us was a miracle 
which helped in the home. 





SUNDAY SESSION 
THE FINAL GALT, OF THE PIRST DISCIPEIS 
Luke 5:1-11 
Mrmory VERSE 


“Come ye after me, and I will make you to become 
fishers of men.”—Mark 1:17. 


Tut Lesson Story 


About a year had passed since the miracle of Jesus at 
Cana in Galilee; Jesus had been preaching and healing in 





FUNTORSGCHURCH SCHOOLSLESSONS 69 


Judea; John the Baptist had been seized by Herod and 
put in prison. Jesus came from Judea to Galilee, preach- 
ing and teaching much the same message that John had 
given: ‘“‘ The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is 
at hand: repent ye, and believe in the gospel.” 

As usual, the multitudes followed him. One morning 
he was near the Sea of Galilee; the people were crowding 
around. The fishermen who had been fishing all night, 
without success, had pulled their boats to the shore, and 
were drying their nets on the beach—spreading them out, 
mending any torn places, seeing that they were in order 
for the next night’s fishing. 

Peter and Andrew, John and his brother James, were 
among the fishermen. Jesus got into Peter’s boat and 
pushed out a little way from the shore, so that he might 
teach the people. When he had finished his sermon he 
said to Peter, “ Put out into the deep, and let down your 
nets for a draught.” 

“ Master, we fished all night, and caught nothing,” 
Peter answered, “ but we will do as you say.” 

Peter and Andrew pushed out, and let down the nets. 
And, to their surprise, when they pulled them up they 
found that the nets were so full that they were breaking! 
They called their partners, John and James, to come and 
help them. ‘There were so many fish that the nets began 
to break, and both boats were filled, so that they began 
to sink. 

Peter was astonished. He fell at Jesus’ feet, for he 
realized again that Jesus was Lord of everything on earth 
and in the sea. He was frightened, and so were James 
and John. But Jesus calmed them. “ Do not be afraid,” 
he said. “‘ After this you shall be fishers of men, instead 
of for fish. Follow me.” 

So the disciples said good-by to their friends. James 
and John said good-by to their father, Zebedee, and they 
followed Jesus. The disciples had been called before, but 
now they finally gave up their business and their daily 
work and went with Jesus to be with him always. 

Jesus calls all of us to follow him just as he called the 
disciples. He wants us to talk to him in prayer; he wants 
to talk to us through the Bible. He wants us to be his 





70 JUNIOR; CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


followers and to learn to do his will. You can choose to 
do this now. Don’t you think it would be a good choice 
to make? Be his followers, try to do his will, and he will 
make you fishers of men. 


Purtinc THE LkEsson INTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Have you yet made the choice to serve God with your 
life? Have you decided to follow him? 

If you decide to follow Christ, you will show it in your 
everyday life. 

Some ways in which you can show that you are a fol- 
lower of Christ are to be obedient, generous, loving, 
loyal, true, faithful, honest. 


Tur Lesson TRutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Right Choice. The boy or girl who has 
decided to fallow Christ will try to make all decisions as 
Christ would wish. Therefore: 

We will ask God to help us to choose right in all the 
decisions which we must make. 


Memory Work 
Learn the following verse of Whittier’s: 


In simple trust like theirs who heard, 
Beside the Syrian sea, 

The gracious calling of the Lord, 

Let us, like them, without a word 
Rise up and follow thee. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
Tuer Crass PRAYER 


O Jesus, we want to follow thee as faithfully as the first 
disciples did. Help us to obey thee unquestioningly, as 
they did. We want to do that which is right, and what 
thou wouldst have us do. Help us to become fishers of 
men, and to do thy will in every way. Amen. 


JONLTORTCHURCIY SCHOOL LESSONS 71 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


Metthew = lOnelS lle Gs uke) 531035 22:295 30.) 323 
10:24; John 15:15; 16:27. 


Hymns THat May Bk USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“ Jesus Calls Us; O’er the Tumult.” 
The hymns which were used in connection with Chap- 
ter VII. 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What was Jesus’ first miracle? 

2. What did he do after the wedding in Cana? 

38. What do you think the disciples did between this 
call and the first call? 

4. Who were the first six disciples? 

5. In what ways does Jesus call us to work that he 
wants us to do? 

6. Can we serve Jesus just as truly as a business man, 
or a housekeeper, as if we were missionaries or ministers? 


‘Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


Following Jesus Every Day. 

How Boys and Girls Can Be Fishers for Men. 
The Calling of Missionaries. 

How We Can Help in Mission Work. 

The Two Calls of the First Disciples. 
Becoming a Church Member. 


ee ae ae 


ELAR TE RegEx: 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE SICK MAN FORGIVEN AND HEALED 
Luke 5:17-26 


MrEmory VERSE 


“But that ye may know that the Son of man hath 
authority on earth to forgive sins (he said unto him that 
was palsied), I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy 
couch, and go unto thy house.”—Luke 5:24. 


Tuer LEsson STORY 


Jesus was teaching in Capernaum, the beautiful and 
prosperous city on the Sea of Galilee, where he made his 
home after he left Nazareth—the city which is known in 
the Bible as “his own city.” 

Capernaum to-day is just a pile of ruins, probably the 
place known as Tell Hum. It was on the northwestern 
shore of the sea. (Look it up on the map. Remember 
that this was Jesus’ chosen home.) 

Capernaum was noted for a famous synagogue, which 
had been built by a Roman centurion who had come to 
believe in the true God. He was what was known as a 
“God-fearer.” Luke 7:5. Because he loved God truly 
he built this synagogue as a memorial, and it is said to 
have been the largest synagogue in Palestine. It was 
built of fine white limestone, and was seventy-nine feet 
long by fifty-nine feet wide. The central room, authori- 
ties tell us, was surrounded on three sides by a colonnade. 
The aisles had two stories. Most of the bases of the col- 
umns are-still in place. ‘They were elaborately orna- 
mented with foliage and geometrical figures. At the 
north side there was a triple doorway. Explorers before 
the Great War excavated the site of this synagogue, and 
tried to rebuild it. It is hoped that some time they will 


72 


PONIOREGIURC EH SCHOOL TLESSONS 8) 


be able to.do this. Then, some critics think, we shall 
have a building—the only building in the world—in 
which Christ actually stood. Other people, however, 
think that this synagogue was built upon the ruins of the 
synagogue of Christ’s day. 

Jesus probably had no house‘of his own in Capernaum, 
for we know that he said that the Son of Man had no 


PEPAPTRAMODE GOrsosHOUSH OR PALESTINE 


AN OUTSIDE 
STAIRWAY 


A Soguarg Wuitst House 





oo 
é 


ee eee eee ee ee ee 


For tHe Main House: Fold an eight-inch square of paper into 
sixteen squares. The dotted lines indicate the folds. Cut along the 
lines a-b, and fold and paste to make the main portion of the flat- 
topped house. 


For THE OursipE STAIRWAY: Fold into steps as indicated a nar- 
row strip of paper, fasten it to the roof and let it drop to the 
ground. 


Doors AND WiNnpows: Cut where indicated on the diagram. 


For THE PARAPET: Paste strips of paper as shown on the picture. 


74 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOPSLR SSO 


place to lay his head. He may have stayed in the house 
of Peter, who, we know, was married and had a home in 
Capernaum where Jesus was entertained. We know that 
one evening Jesus cured Peter’s wife’s mother, who was 
sick with a fever. Luke 4:38, 39. 

Jesus was preaching-in a house at the time of our lesson 
for to-day. Crowds from all parts of Palestine had gath- 
ered to hear him—those attracted by his miracles, those 
who came to criticize, and those who truly believed that 
he was the Messiah. ‘The house was one of the kind 
found commonly in Palestine, a small, white, flat-roofed 
building. The roofs of the houses in the East, you know, 
are often very flimsy structures, not built as we build our 
roofs, but made of tiles and brush, which are covered with 
earth. Even to-day one of the daily duties of the man in 
a Syrian household is to “roll the roof,” that is, to keep 
the earth packed solid and firm, so that a sudden rain wil! 
not leak through into the house. ‘The roof is often 
reached by an outside stairway, and is usually one of the 
pleasantest parts of the house. 

The news of Jesus’ miracles had spread far and wide. 
There was in Capernaum a man who was paralyzed. He 
had not been able to walk for a long time. This man had 
not been a good man; he had been a sinner; but there 
must have been something good about him, for he had 
true friends. Four of these friends decided to take the 
poor, palsied man to Jesus, to see if the great Worker of 
miracles could cure him. They had probably seen some 
of the things that Jesus had done. They must have be- 
lieved in him. 

The paralyzed man could not move by himself. He had 
to be carried from place to place on his bed, which was a 
sort of mattress, for in Palestine the people do not have 
beds as we do, but only woven rugs, which they roll up 
and put out of the way during the day. ‘The four friends 
took up the mattress by the corners; they carried the sick 
man toward Peter’s house. 

But the crowd around the house was great. They could 
not get through. At first they almost gave up. Then 
some one—perhaps it was the palsied man himself— 
thought of a plan. “ We will go up the outside stairway 


TON ORAGELURG HE SCHOOMLESSONS rls 


to the roof,” they decided. “ Then we will make a hole 
through the roof, and let down our friend into the room 
where Jesus is. We want to try in every way to reach 
the great Teacher, for we are sure that he can cure our 
friend.” And the man himself was sure that Jesus could 
cure him. 

They did as they had planned. It must have been hard 
to carry the poor invalid in his mat bed up the narrow 
stairs, and he must have suffered greatly. But in some 
way they managed it. Then they tore away the earth 
covering from the roof; they raised some of the tiles, and 
made a large hole. 

The people in the room below were listening earnestly 
to Jesus. Some of them believed him; others were there 
to criticize; but they were all so interested that they did 
not notice what was going on above them. Suddenly 
they were startled by a noise above their heads. Bits of 
earth and tile fell. There was something coming down 
on top of them! They pushed back, and suddenly saw 
that it was a mattress bed, with a man on it, let down 
through a hole in the roof, by ropes fastened to the four 
corners. ‘They must have been startled. 

Jesus saw the faith of the man and of his friends. He 
knew what they wanted. But he did not say at once to 
the man, “ Be cured.” He said something entirely differ- 
ent, for he knew what the man needed most. He knew 
that his sins were a more serious disease than the palsy 
was, and he said, “ Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.” 

Do you think that the man was disappointed? Do you 
think that his friends were? I think that they were as- 
tonished, but I think, too, that they just waited to see 
what was going to happen next. It was the critical 
scribes and Pharisees who objected. 

“No one can forgive sins except God,’ they said. 
“'This man speaks wickedly, pretending to be God.” 
They were not willing to acknowledge that Jesus was the 
Messiah. 

Jesus knew what they were thinking. He turned to 
them. ‘‘ Why do you reason in this way?” he said. “Is 
it easier to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee, or, Arise and 
walk? But that you may understand that I have power 


76 JUNIORICHURCH SCHOORsUE Ss SON. 


both to forgive sins and to heal diseases,” he said to the 
man with the palsy, “ Arise, and take up thy couch, and 
go unto thy house.” 

The palsied man immediately obeyed. He rose up 
before them, and took up his bed, and went home, glorify- 
ing God. : 

Amazement filled the hearts and the minds of all those 
who saw. They glorified God with fear and reverence, 
saying, “ We have seen strange things to-day.” Jesus 
had power to heal diseases and to forgive sin. To some 
people the power to heal disease seemed greater than the 
power to forgive sin. But really Jesus did the greater 
thing first ; sin is worse than illness, and to be able to for- 
give sins is greater than to cure the palsy. 


HANDWORK 


Make a model of an Oriental house, such as you made 
with Chapter V, or according to the directions given with 
the picture on page 73. 


NoteBook Work 
Enter this lesson in your outline life of Christ. Enter 
also the fact that the first opposition to Christ had begun 
to show itself. 
E,XPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


‘'ry to help some one who is ill and helpless. Perhaps 
you can read to grandmother or to grandfather who does 
not see very well, or go on an errand for some one who is 
lame. Your class might raise enough money to buy a 
crutch or a brace for some boy or girl who has had the 
infantile paralysis. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON 
Luke 15:11-24 
Mrmory VERSE 


“JT will arise and go to my father, and will say unto 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 77 


him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy 
sight.’”—Luke 15:18. 


THE LEsson STORY 


Far, far away in an Eastern country, in the days of 
long ago, there was a father, with two sons. ‘The father 
was rich. He had a beautiful estate and many servants 
who waited on him and the two boys, and provided them 
with everything that their hearts could wish. They had 
the most beautiful home and the best food that money 
could buy. It seemed as if they had everything. 

But something happened that often happens when 
people seem to have everything. The boys were spoiled. 
The younger boy particularly became fond of having his 
own way. He didn’t like it when his father tried to direct 
him even the least little bit. He frowned and sulked 
when he was asked to do anything for anyone else. In 
fact, he was just like many boys are to-day—he thought 
that he could manage things much better than his father 
could do, and he wanted to try. 

So, one day, he went to his father. ‘“ Father,” he said, 
“T’m tired of it here at home. I wish that you'd give me 
the money that you expect to give me when you die. I 
think that I’m old enough to manage things for myself, 
and I want to try.” 

“But, my boy,” the father said, “ you don’t know any- 
thing about business. You'll just get into trouble.” 

But the young man persisted and finally the father gave 
him his share of the estate, and he started out to have 
what he called “a good time.” He went far away from 
home, to places where he had always thought that he 
wanted to go. He went to the most expensive inns. He 
made many acquaintances. And because he had always 
had everything he wanted himself, he was very generous 
with his money. He spent it right and left, and so had 
many people around him who flattered him, and told him 
what a fine young fellow he was. 

At last, however, his money began to grow scarce. He 
suddenly realized that he did not have much left, and that 
he would soon be without any at all. What should he do? 


78 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


He went to his friends and tried to borrow from them. 
But they laughed at him, and refused to lend it. “ Why 
should we lend anything to you?” the first man he asked 
said.) feed never get paid back. You are a waster and 
a spendthrift.” They all seemed to feel very much the 
same way. ‘They were “ fair-weather friends.” 

To make matters worse, there was a crop failure in the 
country, and a famine, so that even those who had plenty 
of money had difficulty in getting food. The young man, 
without money and without friends, was almost starving. 
He got a job as a swineherder, that is, taking care of the 
pigs belonging to a man who lived in the region. He was 
so poorly paid and fed that he would have been glad to 
eat the husks that were given to the swine. 

One day he sat out in the fields watching the pigs. He 
was utterly miserable. He was hungry and heartsore. 
He thought of how lovely it was at home, where there had 
always been plenty to eat and plenty of servants to wait 
upon him—where his father treated even the youngest 
and most humble servant so much better than he was 
treated here. Suddenly he realized how foolish he was. 
He would go home and ask his father to forgive him and 
give him a position of some sort. He was truly sorry for 
the way in which he had acted. He knew now how fool- 
ish and wicked he had been. 

In the meantime the father was not hanes eithetaame 
had grieved greatly because his youngest son had acted 
in such a way. He was anxious about the boy, for he 
loved him very dearly. Day after day he hoped for a 
message. Every chance he got he would go down to the 
highway leading to the great city, and look up and down 
the road, hoping to see the boy come back. One day as 
he looked he saw a poor, ragged figure coming down the 
road. It did not look a bit like the young horseman who 
had ridden so gayly away a few months before. But the 
father recognized his son, even when he was far off. He 
rushed out to meet him, and embraced him and kissed 
him. 

“Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy 
sight,” the young man began. “Iam no more worthy to 
be called thy son.” He did not have a chance to ask for 


LOUNDORSCHURGH SCHOOL. LESSONS 79 


a position. No, his father was too glad to see him. He 
called his servants, and had a new garment brought, the 
very best in the house. He sent for the ring which was 
the sign of honor, and a new pair of shoes. He ordered a 
ereat feast prepared, and told all his people to take a 
holiday. He loved his son, and was glad to have him 
come home, even though he came in rags and in poverty. 

Jesus told this story of the Prodigal Son to a group of 
men who had come to hear him preach and teach. 
Among them were those who were there not to learn but 
to criticize what he said. The story was another parable, 
that is, a story with a meaning. By the loving father, 
Jesus meant to represent God, who is the loving Father 
of all the people in the world. He gives us the beautiful 
earth in which we live, where everything is ready for our 
use. He gives all sorts of good gifts, and has made us 
with brains and hands and feet, with which to think and 
to work and to play—good servants to do our will. He 
loves us and wants us to have every blessing. In return 
he asks from us our love and devotion. Yet men are 
oiten dissatisfied with what God has given them. They 
forget him and neglect him. They want to follow their 
own desires and wishes. They are like the Prodigal Son 
in wanting their own way. But if they are like the 
Prodigal Son also, in being sorry when they find that they 
are wrong, and returning to the loving Father with re- 
pentant hearts, they will find that he is always glad to 
receive them, always ready to forget the evil that they 
have done. 

Perhaps you Juniors have not yet forgotten and ne- 
glected God so completely as the Prodigal Son did. Of 
course you have forgotten him sometimes, and have done 
wrong; but if you have been sorry and have confessed 
your wrongdoings, you have felt that God has forgiven 
you just as your father or your mother forgive you when 
you have done wrong and are sorry. Don’t you think 
that it is much better 1 not to be like the Prodigal Son—to 
try not to neglect God’s wishes and his love? The people 
of Israel were God’s children. ‘They were not willing to 
obey him, and would not acknowledge Jesus as the Mes- 
siah whom he had promised to them; they did not come 


80 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL@EESSONS 


back to him and confess their sins, as the Prodigal Son 
did. We want the people of our country to be God’s 
children. We want to love him and care for him, and not 
to become dissatisfied with his will for us. But if we do 
sin, we will always remember that he is our loving 
Father, who will forgive those who are truly sorry for 
their sins, and who try to do right. 


Purtinc THE Lesson Into THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


God ioves his children in the world just as the father in 
the parable loved his son. He gives us many great and 
wonderful gifts. We should enjoy God’s gifts in every 
way, his gifts of life and brain, of hands and feet, and try 
to use them in his service, as he would have us do. 

We should try to do as God wants us to do. His plans 
for us are best, and if sometimes we have to give up our 
own way, we should do it pleasantly and willingly. 
God’s ways for us are best. 

Having one’s own way too much is not always the best 
thing in the world. Sometimes older people know better 
what is good for you than you yourself know. 

Are you ever friends with people just for what you can 
set out of them? ‘Then you are not true friends. You 
are like the false friends of the Prodigal Son. 

Try to be friends with people for what they are, and 
not for what they give you. 

If you have done wrong, confess your wrongdoing and 
God will forgive you. 


Tue Lesson TrutH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Forgiveness. God is a loving Father, 
ready and willing to forgive those who are sorry for their 
wrongdoing. Therefore: 

We will ask God to help us to keep from sin, but if, 
on account of the perversity of our hearts, we do sin, we 
will confess our wrongdoing to God, and ask him for 
forgiveness. 


JUNIOR GHURCH SCHOOL’ LESSONS 81 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


Tue Crass PRAYER 


Our Father, who art in heaven, we know that thou art 
like the father in the parable of the Prodigal Son. Thou 
are even more loving and forgiving. We know that thou 
art always ready and willing to forgive those who are 
truly sorry for sin. Keep us from wrongdoing, from fol- 
lowing too much the devices and desires of our own 
hearts, of being too sure that we know best. Give us true 
faith in thee, and love for thee and for Jesus, our Saviour. 
For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


eoinoe Ore 2 lee Viattiewso +12 relly .John to :8. 510; 
Hebrews 11:1; James 2:26; I John 1:9. 


Hymns TuHat May BE USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“ Dear Lord and Father of Mankind, Forgive Our Fool- 
ish Ways.” 

ar God, Our Help in Ages Past,” 

“God Is Love; His Mercy Brightens.” 

“Father, Hear the Prayer We Offer.” 

Rejoice, Ye Pure in Heart.” 

“Faith of Our Fathers! Living Still.” 

“Come, My Soul, Thou Must Be Waking.” 

“Oh, Where Is My Wandering Boy To-Night?” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. How did the paralytic and his friends show faith in 
Jesus? 

2. Describe an Oriental house. 

3. If we love Jesus, how can we show our love? 

4. Explain what Jesus meant to teach by the parable 
of the Prodigal Son. 

5. We have all followed too much the devices and 
desires of our own hearts, as did the Prodigal Son. What 
should we do, if we know this and are sorry? 


82 * JONTOR- CHURCH YSCHOOLSLESSONS 


Topics For Discussion or REporTS 


1. The Pharisees Seemed to Think That It Was 
Harder to Cure Disease than to Forgive Sin. What Do 
You Think About It? 


2. There Were Three Cre of People Listening to 
Jesus at the Time When He Healed the Paralytic—Those 
Who Believed, Those Who Did Not Yet Believe, but 
Were Willing to Be Convinced, Those Who Came to 
Criticize. When You Hear a Sermon You Belong to 
One of These Groups. To Which Do You Belong? 


3. How Can Junior Boys and Girls Show Their Faith? 


4. God’s Love for the People of the World Is Greater 
Than That of the Father in the Parable. How Did He 
Show This? John 3:16. 


CHAPTER X 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE FRIEND OF THE FRIENDLESS 
Luke 7 :36-50 
MeEmory VERSE 


“ And he said unto the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee ; 
go in peace.”—Luke 7:50. 


Tue LFEsson STORY 


Eastern customs and Eastern manners are very different 
from those which we know. How would you like to walk 
over hot, dusty roads, without any shoes or stockings, but 
with just sandals upon your feet? You would be very glad, 
I know, when you had reached the place to which you were 
going to have a servant take off your sandals and pour cool 
water from the jar at the door over your feet. You would 
be glad to wash your hands. Often in Jesus’ day a sweet- 
smelling oil was poured on the head. 






TT 


oF 


Another thing that would have seemed queer to us could 
we be in the Palestine of Jesus’ day, would be the way in 


83 


84 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


which people ate. The tables were usually three-sided, as 
you can see in your picture. The people who ate, reclined, 
or lay, on the left elbow, on low couches placed at the 
sides of the table, their heads toward the table, their feet 
away from it. After the guests were in their places, some 
one gave thanks in a loud voice, for all, and the rest of the 
company said “ Amen.” ‘The benediction, which was said at 
the beginning and at the end of the meal, was prescribed by 
the Law of the Jews: “ And thou shalt eat and be full, and 
thou shalt bless Jehovah thy God for the good land which he 
hath given thee.” Deuteronomy 8:10. 

The meal itself would have seemed queer to us. Every- 
one had a flat, thin slice of bread, which could easily be 
rolled up and used to convey food to the mouth, for there 
is no mention in the Bible of forks and spoons, though 
knives are mentioned in Proverbs 23:2, and in other places. 
The meat was served in small pieces, and the head of the 
family gave each person his share, on his round piece of 
bread. The sauce, or the broth, was served in a separate 
dish, and each person dipped his bread into this, to moisten it. 

Jesus was being entertained at the house of Simon the 
Pharisee. ‘There are many Simons in the Bible, for it is the 
most common name in Palestine, and we really know nothing 
about this Simon except what the Bible tells us. By this 
time the fame of Jesus had spread far and wide and it was 
the natural thing for Simon to invite the new Teacher.to his 
house, in order to hear him. But he was careless in his 
greeting. He thought that he was condescending greatly to 
invite the Carpenter to his house. Jesus and his disciples 
had been walking along the dusty road, but there was no 
servant at the door to pour water on their hands and feet, 
and to wash the dust from them. There was no one to pour 
oil on their heads. The host did not greet Jesus with a kiss 
as he would have greeted an honored guest. 

The room where the feast was held was probably separ- 
ated from the entrance court of the house only by a curtain. 
Simon liked to “ show off.” He allowed people to come and 
go in the room where he was entertaining, for it pleased him 
to have everyone know that he was a generous host, and 
that he was interested in everything that was going on. In 
fact, this was a custom among the proud Pharisees—they 


UNIO RICHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 85 


liked to have others come and go, and to see what they were 
doing. 

The feast began. ‘The bread and meat were served and 
Jesus was probably talking. Suddenly a woman slipped 
through the curtains into the room—a woman with her hair 
unbound, which was a sign that she was a sinner. Around 
her neck was a flask of precious ointment. Somewhere, be- 
fore this, she had heard Jesus preach. Perhaps she had 
heard him give the message which the Bible tells us he gave, 
“Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and 
I will give you rest.” She believed that he could do this, 
and she was truly sorry for her sins. She wanted to hear 
more of his teaching. 

She slipped quietly into the room and stood behind Jesus. 
As she listened to him tears fell from her eyes upon his 
feet. She stooped and wiped away the tears with her long 
hair. Then suddenly she broke the cruse of ointment and 
poured the contents on his feet. She wanted to give her 
richest possession to Jesus. 

Simon thought he was very cunning. “If this man were 
really a prophet,” he said to himself, “ he would have known 
that this woman is a sinner. He would not have let her 
come near him.” 

Jesus knew what Simon was thinking. He spoke to the 
Pharisee courteously, “ Simon, I have something to say unto 
thee.” When Simon showed that he was listening Jesus 
told a story. 

“Once upon a time there were two men who owed money,” 
he said. “One man owed fifty shillings; the other man 
owed ten times as much; neither of them could pay; but the 
man to whom they owed the debts was kind. He forgave 
them both. Which of these two, then,” Jesus asked, “‘ should 
love him most?” 

“The man who had owed the most,” Simon answered, 
“would certainly love him the most, and be most thankful.” 

“You are right,” Jesus said. Then he continued: “ When 
I came into your house you gave me no water for my feet, 
you did not kiss me, and you did not anoint my head. This 
woman has done all these things Wherefore I say unto 
thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved 
much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” 


86 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Then he turned to the woman and said much the same 
words that he had said to the paralytic man: “ Thy sins are 
forgiven.(.). .! Thy ‘faith hath saved thee; seo peacess 
And this time, as before, all the people wondered that he said 
that he could forgive sins. Even then many of those who 
heard would not acknowledge that he was the Messiah; 
probably Simon was one of those who would not believe, 
who went on in their own stubborn way. But the woman 
went away with peace in her heart. She knew that Jesus 
was the Messiah, and that he had forgiven her sins. 


HANDWORK 


Make a model of an Eastern table and the seats around it, 
following the picture. Three strips of cardboard, each folded 
in thirds, may be placed at right angles in a U-shaped figure. 
Strips not quite so high may be used as couches. 


NoteBook Work 


Enter this lesson in your outline life of Christ. An ala- 
baster cruse may be drawn in your notebook as an illustra- 
tion of this lesson. Look up the word “alabaster” in a 
dictionary and write the definition in your notebook, under 
the picture. Then add the fact that the cruse and the con- 
tents were valuable—probably the most valuable thing that 
the: woman owned. She gave to Jesus her most valuable 
possession, 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Have you something that you value very much that you 
could give up to show that you love Jesus? Perhaps there 
is some bad habit that you can give up for his sake. Per- 
haps there is a selfish desire for your own way, or a habit of 
laziness, or of untruthfulness. 


Memory Work 
Learn the words of the following poem: 


“T’ve found a Friend; oh, such a Friend, 
So kind and true and tender! 
So wise a Counselor and Guide, 
So mighty a Defender!” 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 87 


SUNDAY SESSION 
Pit ORYORs tHE GOOD SAMARELAN 
Luke 10:25-37 
Memory VERSE 


“And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy 
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all 
thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as 
thyself.”—Luke 10:27. 


Tue Lesson StTorY 


b) 


“T wish you were not going home alone, Jonathan,” said 
Joseph, as his brother from Jericho packed up his saddle- 
bags and prepared his little animal for a return trip from. 
Jerusalem. “There are so many robbers along the way, and 
it is much better to travel ina company.” — 

“ But there doesn’t seem to be any party going in my direc- 
tion,” said Jonathan, “and I must be home by day after to- 
morrow, for I promised Anna and the children, and they 
will worry if I do not come.” 

The road between Jerusalem and Jericho was very lonely. 
It went up, up, up, between steep rocks, behind which rob- 
bers used to hide. They would rush out on travelers pass- 
ing by, and attack and rob them. Everyone who went over 
the road was afraid. He knew that he was helpless if a 
robber band attacked him, when he was alone, so it was very 
brave of Simon to start out alone over the road from Jeru- 
salem to Jericho. 

He said good-by to his brother, and went on his way. His 
donkey was loaded with the goods that he had purchased in 
the great city for his shop, and with gifts for his wife and 
children. As he rode along, the way grew more and more 
lonely. Suddenly he heard a shout, and a number of men 
leaped out from behind a great rock, and attacked him, beat- 
ing him, taking all his purchases, and even many of his 
clothes. ‘They left the poor man unconscious and helpless 
by the side of the road. 

As he lay there a priest passed by. He saw what had 
happened and looked at the man. He was frightened— 


88 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


afraid lest the robbers should attack him, also. He said to 
himself: “ Poor man! he’s probably dead. It won’t do any 
good for me to be killed, too. Pl hurry on.” 

Not long after this a Levite passed on his way up to 
Jericho. He, too, saw the injured man, and he, also, passed 
by without giving any aid. 

And then a third man,passed. This man was a Samaritan 
—one of those people who were descendants of the for- 
eigners whom the Babylonians had brought to Samaria at the 
time of the Captivity of the Israelites. The Jews and the 
Samaritans hated one another. ‘They would even go out of 
their way to injure one another. But this Samaritan had a 
kind heart. He stopped and looked at the poor man. When 
he saw how badly he was hurt he tried to help him. He 
washed out the wounds with oil and wine; he bound them 
up; he set poor Jonathan on his donkey, and, holding him on 
as comfortably as possible, took him to the nearest inn. 

“ Help this man in every way,” he said to the innkeeper. 
“Here is some money. If you need to use more, I will re- 
pay it the next time I come this way.” 


2 2 xf x 2 * 


Jesus told a story something like this one day to a group 
of men who wanted to criticize his teachings. One of these 
men was a lawyer. He was trying, or testing Jesus. He 
asked Jesus a question which many people before that time 
and since have asked, “ What shall I do to inherit eternal 
life?” Jesus answered with another question, “ What is 
written in the law? how readest thou?” ‘The lawyer, forced 
to answer his own inquiry, quoted from the Scripture, 
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and 
with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy 
mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” 

The lawyer, “ desiring to justify himself,” asked another 
question, “ And who is my neighbor?” ‘Then Jesus told the 
story of the Good Samaritan, showing that neighbors are 
not always those who live closest to us, not even those of our 
own nation, but those who are in need of our love and kind- 
ness. For certainly we shall agree that the man whom we 
call “The Good Samaritan” was more a neighbor to the 


UNC CUR CieSsCHOOLSLESSONS 89 


poor traveler who had been attacked by robbers, than were 
the priest and the Levite who passed by without helping him. 


PUTTING THE Lesson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Your neighbors are not only those who live next door to 
you, but those who live far away. You may not be able to 
know them personally, as you know the man who lives in the 
next house, but you can try to help them by helping the mis- 
sionaries who go from home to a foreign land. 

A stranger always needs a friend and neighbor, even if he 
does not seem to you to need help as the injured traveler in 
the story of the Good Samaritan needed it. Try to doa 
neighborly act each day this week, to a person living near 
you, and to a stranger. 

If there is a foreign child in your school, you may be sure 
that he needs a neighbor. If he does not understand Eng- 
lish very well, perhaps you can help him with his lessons. 


Tue Lesson TrutH EXPRESSED IN A LAw 


The Law of Teamwork. Jesus tells us that we should 
do unto others as we should have them do unto us. We call 
this “ The Golden Rule.” Therefore: 

We will endeavor to treat others always in the right way, 
and work with them, not against them. 


Mrmory WorkK 
Learn the Golden Rule. Matthew 7:12. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
‘THE Crass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to give to Jesus our very 
best gifts, as the woman in the story did. We want to treat 
others as he would have us do, as the Good Samaritan 
treated the wounded man. Let us not pass by when others 
need us. May we help them in every way, giving up our 
own wills when it is best. We ask for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


90 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Leviticus 19:18; Deuteronomy 6:5; Mark 12:33; John 
13:34, 35: 14:15; 15:12; Romans 13:8-10; 1 Corinthians; 
chapter 13; John 3:16; I John 3:16. 


Hymns Tuat May BE UsEp IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“ My Faith Looks Up to Thee.” 
“ Whiter Than Snow.” 

“ T’ve Found a Friend.” 

“ There’s No Love.” 

“Tell Me the Old, Old Story.” 
Po lubicare lve clcomicay Occ 


Qurstions For Usk In THE MEETING 


1. What are some best gifts that Junior boys and girls 
may give to Jesus? 

2. Are Junior boys and girls ever like Simon, the Phari- 
see? How? 

3. Are we careless and indifferent toward Jesus if we 
are careless and indifferent toward the Church? 

4. Who are our neighbors? 

5. Have you other neighbors besides the people who live 
next door to you? Who are they? 

6. Do railroads and telegraphs and the wireless make 
you feel more like neighbors to all the people of the world? 

7. Do you ever feel that a boy in India is a neighbor? 
What should you do about it? 


Topics For Discussion or REPoRTS 

1. How Junior Boys and Girls May Show Their Love 
for Jesus. 

2. How Junior Boys and Girls Can Keep from Being 
Like Simon the Pharisee. 

3. How to Show Neighborliness. 

4. How Modern Inventions Have Made the World More 
of a Neighborhood. 

5. Has the Great War Made the World More Neigh- 
borly ? 


CLS USE LEHR 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
A DAY IN THE LIFE, OF JESUS 
Matthew 14:13-33; John 6:1-21 


Mrmory VERSE 


“ And the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is 
this, that even the winds and the sea obey him? ”—Mat- 


. thew 8:27. 


Tue Lesson Story 


John the Baptist had been put in prison by wicked King 
Herod, because he had dared to rebuke the monarch for his 
sin. The place of his imprisonment was a grim fortress 
on the shore of the Dead Sea, called Machzrus—one of 
Herod’s many prisons. 

John the Baptist had criticized the latest of Herod’s many 
marriages. He had married his brother’s wife, Herodias, a 
marriage which was illegal. Herodias was a scheming, cruel 
woman. She had a daughter who was equally wicked; her 
name was Salome. One day Salome danced before King 
Herod. He was pleased with her dancing, and promised to 
do for her anything she asked. 

Salome’s mother knew what she wanted, and it did not 
take long: for her to tell Salome what to ask for. She 
asked for the head of the preacher, John the Baptist. 
Though Herod hesitated, he kept his promise, and so John 
the Forerunner met his death. 

John had been a great man. He had done his duty; he 
had foretold the Messiah as God had planned. But his fate 
was cruel, and he died because of the anger of a scheming 
and wicked woman. 

John died in a. p. 29. At this time Jesus was in Galilee, 
preaching and teaching. John’s disciples buried their master. 
Then they took ‘the next step. ‘They came to Jesus and told 
him their trouble. 


91 


92 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Just about this time, too, some of the disciples whom 
Jesus had sent out to preach and to teach came back. Jesus 
wanted to talk with them, and he wanted, too, to be alone, 
for he knew that his own days of trial and death were soon 
coming. 

“ Let us take a boat and sail to a quiet place where we can 
be alone,” he said ta,the disciples. The boat was a little 
fishing boat. ‘The disciples obeyed Jesus and the party 
started out. 

But Jesus had won too great popularity to be able to get 
away from the people. It was about passover time, and 
there were great crowds going to Jerusalem. They had 
heard of Jesus’ fame and they wanted to hear him. The 
Sea of Galilee is not very large, and as the boat sailed away 
the people on the shore could see it. They followed along 
the beach and found that the boat was never completely out 
of sight. So it happened that when Jesus, in the little fish- 
ing boat, reached his destination, he found the people there 
before him, five thousand men, besides the women and chil- 
dren, lame and halt and blind, all those whom he wanted 
so much to help. He gave up his desire to rest and turned 
to the work of teaching and healing. 

The Bible tells us that the place of this lesson was a 
“ desert place,” and those who know the geography of Pales- 
tine think that it was the Plain of Butaiha, a flat plain edg- 
ing down to the Sea of Galilee. It is not desert as we use 
the word, for it is covered with grass and flowers, but there 
are no houses, and this is what “ desert ” means here. 

Jesus preached and taught and healed. ‘The people were 
so interested that, before they knew it, it was late in the 
day. They were far away from their homes, and there were 
no villages near by in which they might buy food. 

Philip acted as a sort of steward for the disciples, though 
Judas was the treasurer. Besides, he lived in the neighbor- 
hood, and would probably know where supplies might be 
obtained. 

“Where can we get bread for all these people?” Jesus 
asked Philip. He himself knew, but he asked in order to 
test his disciples. 

Philip was troubled. ‘“ Two hundred shillings’ worth of 
bread is not sufficient for them,” he said, “that everyone 


SNVHUNG “H “M—VCIVSH LAG AGNV Aa’IVIVS AO VAS AHL 








JUNTORE CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 93 


may take a little.’ (Two hundred shillings, in its purchas- 
ing power, would be as much as two hundred dollars in our 
day, and Philip knew that the disciples had nothing like this 
sum. ) 

The other disciples were troubled, too. By this time they 
had all gathered around. “Send the multitude away,” they 
urged. “ Let them go to the nearest villages and get food for 
themselves.” 

“They need not go away,” Jesus told his followers. 
“Give ye them to eat.” 

“Why, how can we do that?” asked the disciples. ‘ We 
have neither food nor money.” 

“ How much food is there in the company?” asked Jesus. 
“Go and see.” 

The disciples scattered, to ask if anyone had food. Pretty 
soon Andrew came back. 

“There is a boy here with five loaves and two small 
fishes,” said he. “ But what are they among so many?” 

“ Bring the food to me,” said Jesus, “and make the people 
sit down.” 

The disciples must have been surprised. The “ loaves ” 
of bread were only what we should call large crackers; the 
fish were probably something like sardines. ‘They certainly 
did not look like enough to feed the great crowd of people 
who were waiting, hungry and tired. Perhaps they were 
just one boy’s supper. The disciples told the people to sit 
down, as Jesus had directed. They obeyed and arranged 
themselves in groups on the grass, their bright-colored 
clothes making them look like a many-colored flower garden. 
Then the disciples went back to Jesus. He hfted up his 
eyes to heaven and spoke a blessing. ‘Then he broke the 
loaves and divided the fish. He gave some to each disciple. 
They took what they had to the first row of people. There 
was enough for the first group—there was enough for the 
second—the third—plenty for five thousand men, besides 
the women and children, And they all had enough and 
more than enough, for when the disciples gathered up the 
fragments, there were twelve baskets full—the large baskets 
which they carried with them, to contain their supplies. 
Once more Jesus had shown his power. This time he multi- 
plied a few loaves and fishes till they became enough to feed 


94 JUNIOR OH URCHYS GHOORALESsons 


thousands of people. He showed that he was Master of 
nature as well as of men. 

Of course the result of the miracle was what we should 
expect. The people and the disciples clamored that they 
wanted Jesus to be their King. They felt that One who 
could supply their wants as he did was the Master whom 
they needed. They thought that by a word he could conquer 
their Roman rulers and become King. 

But Jesus knew that this was not what God wished. He 
knew that he was not to be that kind of King. He sent the 
people away. The disciples, too, he sent to Capernaum across 
the end of the lake in the boat, while he himself withdrew 
to a quiet place where he could pray to his Father in heaven. 

The disciples must have been awed and reverent on ac- 
count of Jesus’ miracle. They sailed quietly across the lake, 
talking of what they had seen Jesus do that day. 

The Sea of Galilee, as you know, is surrounded by high 
hills. Often a gust of wind will arise and, blowing between 
the hills, will cause a squall, or sudden storm, that makes 
the quiet water rough and dangerous in a moment. As the 
disciples sailed along this evening after the miracle of the 
feeding of the five thousand, such a squall arose. In a mo- 
ment the disciples seemed to be in great danger. They 
hauled in the sail; they made fast the tackle and tried to 
row to a place of safety. Could they make shore, they 
wondered? ‘They rowed on and on, for twenty-five or thirty 
furlongs, three or four miles, but the wind was contrary, 
and they could not make shore. 

The fourth watch—early morning—came. Still they 
were struggling, and although they were experienced seamen, 
they had almost given up hope. 

Suddenly a figure appeared, walking toward the boat. 

“Tt is a ghost,” called out the disciples, more terrified 
than ever. But immediately the voice of Jesus came to them 
across the water, “ Be of good cheer; it is 1; be not afraid.” 

They must have been relieved of their fear, for they knew 
how great Jesus’ power was. Peter, as usual, was quick to 
speak. “If it is you, Lord,” he said, “bid me come to you 
on the water.” 

“Come,” said Jesus. 

Peter stepped bravely out of the boat. He started to walk 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 95 


toward Jesus, but when he saw how great the waves were, 
he suddenly became terrified. He lost faith, and called out, 
“Lord, save me.” 

Jesus stretched out his hand. He took hold of Peter. 
“ Why did you doubt?” he said. “ You had too little faith.” 
Then he and Peter entered the boat. The wind stopped 
blowing. ‘The storm was over. 

Jesus had given one more proof that he was the Son of 
God. The disciples knew it. They fell at his feet and wor- 
shiped him, saying, “ Of a truth thou art the Son of God.” 


HANDWORK 


Try to make a small boat something like that which the 
disciples used on the Sea of Galilee. 


DIRECTIONS FOR A PAPER Boat 


Take a piece of paper 4 by 5% inches, and fold crosswise. 
Holding the open edges toward you, turn the two upper 
corners to the center, and fold back the lower edges, making 
a soldier’s hat. Fold back the points at each side, making 
a triangle. ‘Take one of these points in each hand, and put 
together, forming a square. Fold back the points again, 
forming a triangle. ‘Take the middle of the sides between 
the fingers and pull, forming a square with a slit from top 
to bottom. ‘Take hold of the upper corners of the outside 
of the slit, and pull out, forming a boat. 

Take a three-cornered piece of paper for a sail, something 
like that which is called a “leg-of-mutton” sail. Use a 
toothpick for a mast, or if your boat is larger, any suitable 
piece of wood. Set up the sail in the forepart of the boat. 


NoreEBooK WorRK 


Put the events of this lesson in your notebook life of 
Christ. If you have a Bible with references, find out in 
what other places in the Bible besides those given in our les- 
son material the story of this lesson is told. It is the only 
miracle given in all four Gospels. Find the references and 
put them in your notebook. 


96 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Don’t you think that in connection with this lesson it 
would please Jesus if you helped to feed some of his children 
who do not have enough to eat? Can you share some of 
your school lunch with some other pupil who does not have 
enough? Perhaps your class can give money toward feed- 
ing children in our own country, or in other lands, who do 
not have good, nourishing food. 


Memory Work 
Learn the hymn, “ Break Thou the Bread of Life.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 


THE STORY OF THE WISE AND THE FOOLISH 
VIRGINS 


Matthew 25:1-13 


MEMory VERSE 


“And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.”— 
Mark 13:37. 


THe Lesson Story 


“Joseph is long in coming, Ruth. I wonder what has 
delayed the procession.” And Esther yawned, as she roused 
from the nap which she had been taking, while she and nine 
other maidens were waiting for the bridal procession of their 
friends, Joseph and Elisabeth. 

“It is hard to tell, Esther. Perhaps there was some 
trouble in preparing the feast. Perhaps some of his friends 
who were coming from a distance have not yet arrived.” 

It was the custom in Palestine for the bridegroom to go 
to the bride’s house for her, and to escort her, with a pro- 
cession of friends, to her new home. She would wait for 
him, in her father’s house, dressed in her bridal dress, 
adorned with all her jewels. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 97 


The friends of both the bride and the groom would wait 
till the procession passed, and then they would join it, light- 
ing the way of the bridal couple through the dark streets 
with their lamps and torches. The lamps of the East are 
small, holding only enough oil to last about two hours, and 
so have to be filled frequently. 

Slowly the minutes passed. Esther and Ruth and their 
friends dozed. At last Ruth spoke. ‘“ They certainly are 
slow in coming. The oil in my lamp is getting low. It 
ought to be filled again.” And she anxiously shook the little 
hand lamp which she carried. 

“ You have plenty of oil, haven’t you?” asked Esther. “I 
went to the merchant, and bought extra before we came out 
to wait.” 

“T couldn’t seem to get ready in time, Esther. I didn’t 
have a chance to get extra oil. Can you give me some of 
yours?” 

“Tm sorry, but Joseph is so late, Ruth, that I have just 
enough for myself. Perhaps you can borrow some from 
Salome or from Joanna.” 

But Salome didn’t have any oil at all, and Joanna had 
enough only for herself. 

“T suppose we'll have to go to the oil merchant,” said 
Ruth at last. “My lamp has gone out, and we can’t insult 
Joseph and Elisabeth by meeting them without burning 
lamps. That would be the sign of a funeral—not of a 
wedding.” 

And so Ruth and Salome and three of the other maidens 
started to the oil merchant’s, while Esther and Joanna and 
the three others who had oil for themselves, waited for the 
procession. 

While the foolish, careless maidens were gone, the bride- 
groom came. ‘Those who were ready joined the procession 
and went into the house. 

“All the guests are here, Simon,” said Joseph to his 
servant. “ Shut the door, lest robbers try to get in and dis- 
turb our feast. The streets are dark, and we want to rejoice 
ny peace. 

And so the door was shut. Ruth and Salome and the 
_ other foolish virgins were shut out. They could not get in. 


98 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


They had lost the chance to go to the feast, because they had 
been careless. 


* > *K ok *K kK 


Like this was a story Jesus told to the disciples. The first 
miracle of Jesus about which we read in the Bible was the 
miracle at the wedding of Cana in Galilee, when he turned 
water into wine. Now, toward the end of his ministry he 
told this story about a wedding—the story which we call 
“The Parable of the Wise and the Foolish Virgins.” 

Jesus knew that his disciples needed to be taught the les- 
son of the parable—the lesson of watchfulness. ‘“ Watch 
therefore,” he said to them as he finished the story, “ for ye 
know not the day nor the hour ”—that is, they were to be 
prepared for whatever might come. And to be prepared, 
they must do their duty every day, must always do their 
very best. Then they would be ready, whatever happened. 

And that lesson is as good for people to-day as it was for 
the disciples in the days of Christ. It is a lesson for every- 
day life. If you are not ready, you will miss many good 
things that you might have enjoyed. Perhaps you have 
thought that you had no chance on the ball team, and neg- 
lected to practice—and then, when you might have played 
because John and Henry and Peter were ill or away, you 
weren’t in good enough practice to play. Perhaps you might 
lave gone on the automobile ride that you were unexpectedly 
invited to take, if you hadn’t had to “cram” for an exami- 
nation. You will find that it pays to be ready always. 

But when we come to think of Jesus and the Church, it is 
wiser even than in everyday matters to watch, and to be 
ready. ‘This is what Jesus wanted his disciples to think 
about. You can be ready by joining the Church, by accept- 
ing Jesus as your Saviour, by listening to your parents and 
teachers when they try to show you the right way, by read- 
ing the Bible and trying to do what God wants you to do. 
Se you will be ready and waiting to go into the wedding 
feast, and not be shut out as the foolish virgins were. 


PUTTING THE Lesson InTo Tue Lire oF THE CLASS 


The boy and the girl who keep in good health, who try to 
avoid all bad habits, who do their school work thoroughly, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 99 


trying to learn well the lessons given them by parents and 
teachers, are preparing in the best way for the future. 

“Many a young man finds no oil in his lamp when the 
procession of opportunities passes by him. He imagines that | 
he is unlucky. In reality he was simply unprepared.” 

Prepare now so that you will be ready to accept Jesus’ 
invitation to take your place in his glorious Kingdom that 
is to be. 


Tur Lesson TRutH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Preparedness. If we are ready when 
opportunities come to us, we can take advantage of them. 
Therefore: 

We will try to do our best in everything that we do, so that 
we may be prepared for what God wants us to do in the 
future. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
THE CLass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we have seen in our lessons this 
week how Jesus filled one day of his life by helping others, 
by teaching, by praying. Help us to fill our lives, too, with 
good things. ‘Though we are only boys and girls, help us to 
learn well the lessons that we have to learn at school, at 
home, and at play. Help us to do our duty, and to be brave 
in doing those things which it is hard for us to do, and so to 
follow the example of Jesus. Help us to prepare ourselves 
in the right way for our future lives, so that we may be thy 
children and thy guests in the everlasting Kingdom. For 
Jesus’ sake. Amen.. | 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Matthew 14:13-23; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15; Deuter- 
Pionivoiws) Ninesel7/.6:. 1) Corinthians, 16:13); Luke 
12 :35-38; Deuteronomy 4:9; Proverbs 4:23-26; Matthew 
Peet 20 00.4107 Romats 1o.ll¢ 2 Corinthians, 10:12: 
16:13; Ephesians 6:13, ,18; I Thessalonians 5:4, 6; Revela- 
eta 2.5. 1Or13; 


100 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Hymns THat May Bs UseEp IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


‘Jesus, Saviour, Pilot Me.” 

slSO eels tL MB eNOtEATraldsn 

SO: ermasPracklcssp cam mieoallinges 
“Rescue the Perishing.”’ 

Jesus) CallssWs.~ 

“ Break Thou the Bread of Life.” 


QurEsTIONS For UsE IN THE MEETING 


1. ‘The miracle of the feeding of the five thousand is the 
only miracle given in all four of the Gospels. Why do you 
think that this 1s so? 

2. How was it possible for the people at the time of the 
feeding of the five thousand to know where Jesus was going, 
and to reach the place as soon as he did? 

3. Which disciples are mentioned in connection with this 
miracle? What else do you know about each of them? 

4. Why did the five wise virgins refuse to help the five 
foolish virgins? 

5. Were they selfish? 

6. How can you best be prepared for the future? 


‘Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. If | Had Been ‘the Boy with the, Uoaves@andaric 
Fishes. 

2. The Feeding of the Four Thousand. Matthew 
15 :32-38; Mark 8:1-9. 

3. Christ; the Bread of Lite. 

4. Oriental Marriage Customs. 

5. The Oil Which We Cannot Share. (At examination 
time, for instance, you cannot share what you have learned, 
with your chum who has neglected to study during the term. 
You can help him to prepare beforehand, but when examina- 
tion time comes, you cannot give him your knowledge.) 

6. What Is It to Watch. 

7. Lost Opportunities. 


GHAPTER IT 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
AM BNE MUA DSA NAIOID AMOS ORS 
Luke 9 :18-22, 28-43a 
Memory VERSE 


“And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my 
Son, my chosen: hear ye him.”—Luke 9:35, 


Tue Lesson STorY 


Far in the north of the country of Palestine, in the oppo- 
site end of the land from Jerusalem, lay the city of Cesarea 
Philippi, the city of Ceesar, called to distinguish it from the 
other Czesarea, on the seacoast, “ Philippi,” in honor of 
Herod Philip, who had rebuilt it. “The situation of the 
ancient Czesarea Philippi (1147 feet above the sea),” says 
Edersheim, “is, indeed, magnificent. Nestling amid three 
valleys on a terrace in the angle of Hermon, it is almost 
shut out from view by cliffs and woods. ‘ Everywhere there 
is a wild medley of cascades, mulberry trees, fig trees, 
dashing torrents, festoons of vines, bubbling fountains, reeds, 
and ruins, and the mingled music of birds and waters.’ The 
vegetation and fertility all around are extraordinary. The 
modern village of Banias is within the walls of the old 
fortifications, and the ruins show that it must anciently have 
extended far southwards. But the most remarkable points 
remain to be described. The western side of a steep moun- 
tain, crowned by the ruins of an ancient castle, form an 
abrupt rock wall. Here, from out an immense cavern, bursts 
a river. ‘These are the ‘upper sources’ of the Jordan.” 

In our lesson for to-day we find that Jesus and the dis- 
ciples had withdrawn to this beautiful region of Palestine. 
Matthew 16:13. A crisis had come in Jesus’ life. He had 
refused to be made king, as the people had wanted him to do 
after the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand. Asa 
result, many of his followers had turned away, and had 


101 


102 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


ceased to follow him. ‘The scribes and Pharisees had de- 
manded a sign; they were insistent in their persecution. He 
knew that there was only a short time remaining to him in 
which he could teach his disciples those things which it was 
necessary that they should know. Quietly he withdrew from 
strict Jewish territory, going into the region of the Gentiles, 
where the persecution of his enemies would not be so severe. 
Accompanied by the Twelve, he “came into the parts of 
Czesarea Philippi.” 

Here, untroubled by the crowds who had followed him in 
Galilee, and by the scribes and Pharisees from Jerusalem, 
he taught the disciples and instructed them in many points 
which they would need after he had left them. They did 
not fully understand, of course, but the time would come 
when they would remember these teachings, and rejoice in 
them. 

Then, one day, after praying to God as his custom was, 
Jesus asked a question of his disciples—a question whose 
answer told the most important and greatest truth in the 
world. 

“Who do the multitudes say that I am?” Jesus asked 
first, and the disciples answered, “ Some people say that you 
are Elijah; others say that you are John the Baptist, re- 
turned to life; still others say that you are one of the 
prophets of old, who has risen again.” 

“But who say ye that Iam?” Jesus asked next. 

Peter often spoke impulsively, almost without thinking. 
He was always the first of the apostles to answer a question. 
His answer to this question was quick, but if he had thought 
a thousand years, he could not have made it better—‘‘ Thou 
art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Peter knew that 
Jesus was the Messiah expected by the Jews. He knew that 
Jesus was the Christ. 

Jesus was pleased at Peter’s words, which we call “the 
Great Confession,” and he exclaimed: “ Blessed art thou, 
Simon Bar-Jonah: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it 
unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven. And I also say 
unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will 
build my church;” that is, Peter’s faith and the truth which 
he expressed that Jesus was the Son of God were the very 
foundations of the Kingdom of Christ. 


JUNTORSCHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 103 


Then, because Jesus thought that the disciples were ready 
to understand his words, he began to teach them about what 
was coming so soon to him and to them, his death and resur- 
rection. But the disciples were not yet ready to understand, 
and Peter tried to persuade Jesus not to speak of such 
things. 

And in a moment Peter, who had been a “ rock ” had be- 
come a “ stumbling-block,” for he was trying to tempt Jesus 
to take an easier way to win the Kingdom than that which 
God had planned. Jesus even called him “Satan.” “ Get 
thee behind me, Satan,” he said, for Peter was tempting him 
as Satan had tempted him in the wilderness. Here, so near 
the end of his ministry, was much the same temptation as 
he had had in the beginning. Jesus saw that he must teach 
the disciples still more of his truth before they were ready 
to tell it to others. 

For six days, Matthew says, Jesus continued this teaching. 
Luke tells us that “it came to pass about eight days after 
these sayings,” that Jesus went up into a mountain to pray, 
taking with him his three disciples Peter, James, and John. 
Luke’s form of reckoning 1s the form most common among 
the Jews, who include the day of beginning and the day of 
ending, when they reckon a period of time. (Thus the 
crucifixion occurred on Friday, and the resurrection on Sun- 
day, yet the Jewish calculation makes the time when Jesus 
was in the grave three days.) 

The mountain which Jesus and the three ascended was 
probably Mount Hermon, that great mountain with its three 
peaks, which is visible from so many parts of Palestine, and 
which is not very far from Czsarea Philippi. Two of the 
peaks of Hermon are of about equal height, 11,000 feet 
above the Jordan Valley, and 9400 feet above the sea. The 
third is about one hundred feet lower. Far and wide its 
beautiful, snow-covered summits are visible, even as far as 
Jerusalem. 

There is only one road that leads from Czsarea Philippi 
to Hermon. ‘This road passes first ‘among vine-clad hills 
stocked with mulberry, apricot, and fig trees; then through 
cornfields where the pear tree supplants the fig ; next, through 
oak coppice, and up rocky ravines to where the soil is dotted 
with dwarf shrubs. And if we pursue the ascent, it still 


104 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


becomes steeper, till the first ridge of snow is crossed, after 
which turfy banks, gravelly slopes, and broad snow patches 
alternate. ‘The top of Hermon in summer—and it can be 
ascended only in summer or in autumn—is free from snow, 
but broad patches run down the sides, expanding as they 
descend. ‘To the very summit it is well earthed; to five hun- 
dred feet below it, studded with countless plants, higher up 
with dwarf clumps.” 

Jesus, with the three disciples, Peter, James, and John, 
ascended the mountain to pray. The disciples must have 
been in a sort of maze ‘They did not understand Jesus’ 
teachings fully, and they were disappointed about the King- 
dom in which they had hoped to be rulers. All that they 
were certain of was that they loved Jesus, and were glad to 
follow him. ‘They trusted him, whatever came. Up there 
on the mountain, however, a wonderful event took place, 
an event which they remembered always afterwards, even 
though it seems to us that they forgot it for a short time in 
the grief and sorrow of Jesus’ crucifixion and death. 

Luke, whose account of this wonderful event is our lesson 
material, says, “ The fashion of his countenance was altered, 
and his raiment became white and dazzling.” Matthew 
writes, ““ He was transfigured before them; and his face did 
shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light.” 
Mark, who probably heard the story from Peter says, “ He 
was transfigured before them; and his garments became 
glistering, exceeding white, so as no fuller on earth can 
whiten them.” 

Jesus’ face shone with a wonderful inner radiance. Even 
his garments appeared radiant. Moses and Elijah, the two 
representatives of the old Jewish Law and prophecy, ap- 
peared in glory, and talked with him about his death in Jeru- 
salem, which was to come so soon. 

Peter and James and John had been tired by their climb 
up the mountain. They were probably worried and anxious 
about the teachings of Jesus concerning his death, which 
they did not understand. While Jesus was praying they 
had fallen asleep. But the sudden light roused them. ‘They 
saw clearly the figures with Jesus. In some way they knew 
who they were. It must have seemed to them a glorious ful- 
fillment of Jesus’ Messiahship. He had been telling them 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 105 


about his death. To Peter that had seemed unlike what he 
had expected from the Messiah. This was more like what 
he had hoped for. As usual he was the first to speak, and 
he spoke impulsively, hardly knowing what he said, “ Master, 
it is good for us to be here: and let us make three taber- 
nacles ; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 
It seemed to Peter that he could remain forever upon the 
mountain top, watching the wonderful scene before him. 
But it did not last. Even while Peter spoke, a cloud over- 
shadowed them, and there came a voice from heaven saying 
words somewhat like those that had been spoken at the time 
of Jesus’ baptism, “ This is my Son, my chosen: hear ye 
him.” 

The disciples fell on their faces in terror. Jesus came 
and touched them, and told them not to fear. And as they 
lifted up their eyes, they saw that their Master was alone. 
But they had seen enough. Awed and almost overcome with 
reverence, they followed Jesus down the mountain, listening 
to his words, “ ‘Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of 
man be risen from the dead.” 

Does it not seem to you that the disciples would have re- 
membered this vision always? But it seems as if they must 
have forgotten it very shortly, in the sad and terrible hours 
of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus, which came so soon, 
but long afterwards they remembered it. Peter, when he 
was an old, old man, wrote of it in his Second Epistle, 
II Peter 1:16-18: “ We were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 
For he received from God the Father honor and glory, when 
there was borne such a voice to him by the Majestic Glory, 
This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: and 
this voice we ourselves heard borne out of heaven, when 
we were with him in the holy mount.” 

Peter wanted to stay on the mountain to worship, but 
there was need for Jesus in the world. He had come to 
serve the world—not to be ministered unto, but to minister 
and he left the Mount of Transfiguration, to go down to the 
people of the world, and to minister unto them and serve 
them in every way that he could, before the time came for 
him to die for them on the cross. Read in Matthew 17 :14-18, 
what Jesus did as soon as he came down from the mountain. 





106 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LEssons 


HANDWORK 


Work out on the sand table your idea of the geography of 
Mount Hermon, with its three high peaks, covered with 
snow throughout all the year. 


NoteBook Work 


If possible get a copy of Raphael’s picture of the trans- 
figuration. ‘This can be obtained from the Wilde or Perry 
Pictures Companies. Paste it in your notebook in connec- 
tion with your entry of to-day’s lesson. 


Map Work 


Trace on the map the journey of Jesus and the disciples 
to Czsarea Philippi. Locate Mount Hermon also. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Read in Matthew the account of what Jesus did after he 
came down from the Mount of Transfiguration. Then see 
if you cannot do something for some one else, as he did. 


Mrmory Work 


Learn the following couplet: 
“ Beautiful thoughts make a beautiful soul, 
And a beautiful soul makes a beautiful face.” 


A Story To BE READ IN CoNNECTION witH ‘THIs LESSON 


Read. the story of Ernest in Hawthorne’s “ Story of the 
Great Stone Face.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE LAST JUDGMENT 
Matthew 25 :21-40 
Memory VERSE 


“ And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I 
say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my 
brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.”—Matthew 
25 :40. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 107 


Tue Lesson Story 


Jesus knew that the end of his life was approaching. He 
told the disciples many parables, or stories with hidden 
meanings, about the Kingdom of heaven, and how they 
should prepare for it. Now he told his followers about the 
Judgment Day—the day “when the Son of man shall come 
in his glory, and all the angels with him,” when he shall “ sit 
on the throne of his glory,” judging the nations of the earth. 

Jesus uses a picture that was familiar to his hearers—the 
picture of the Eastern shepherd, who has both sheep and 
goats in his flock, but who separates them as night falls, 
placing the goats on one side, the sheep on the other. So, 
Jesus says, the Son of man, who is also the King, will sep- 
arate the people of the world. Some he will place at his 
right hand, others at his left. Then he will say to those on 
the right, “ Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the king- 
dom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 
for I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and 
ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in; 
naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I 
was in prison, and ye came unto me.” 

Those so addressed will be surprised. They will not 
realize that they have done all these things for Jesus—that 
they have fed him and given him drink; clothed him, or 
visited him when sick. 

“When did we do these things for you?” they will ask. 
* We did not know it.” 

Then the King will say the beautiful words of our Memory 
Verse, “Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my breth- 
ren, even these least, ye did it unto me.” 

But to those on his left hand the King will give a different 
message—they will have done nothing for him. And when 
they ask when they have seen him hungry, or poor, or sick, 
or in prison, he will answer, “Inasmuch as ye did it not 
unto one of these least, ye did it not unto me.” So they will 
be punished, while those on Jesus’ right hand will be re- 
warded. | 

Did you ever think how this story applies to us to-day? 
We are living a long, long time after the days of Jesus. 
We are not able to know him as the disciples knew him there 
_ beside the Sea of Galilee. Perhaps we feel that we can do 


108 JUNIOR, CHURCH SCHOOLER sae ls 


nothing for him. But this story teaches us that every little 
thing we do for others for his sake, is done for him just as 
truly as if he were here in school with us. If you help a 
classmate who cannot understand the arithmetic lesson, be- 
cause you love Jesus and want to do what he would like, you 
are doing a kind act to him. If you share with others for 
his sake, if you give up your own way for his sake, you will 
be pleasing him just as much as 1f he were here. He really 
is here, just as truly as if we could see him. 

We do not know when the Judgment Day will be, but we 
do know how kind and loving and forgiving Jesus is, and we 
are sure that, if we try to please him and do for others what 
we could do for him if he were here in this place with us 
to-day, he will place us on his right hand at the Judgment 
Day. 


PuTTING THE Lesson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Jesus is with us to-day, just as he was with the disciples 
nineteen hundred years ago. When we give up our own way, 
when we do a kind act, when we try to do right—for his 
sake—we are doing something for him. Are there any of 
the kind acts mentioned in this lesson that you can and will 
do this week? 

1. Can you give food to anyone who is hungry? Will 
your 

2. Can you give a drink of water to anyone who is 
thirsty? Will you? 

3. Can you make a stranger in your school feel at home? 
Will you? 

4, Can you help to give clothing to some one who does 
not have enough? Will you? 

5. Can you visit anyone who is ill? Will you? 

6. Can you help anyone who is in prison? Will you? 

If you do any of these things for Jesus’ sake, you will be 
doing something for him. 


Books AND StorIES To READ witH THIs Lesson 


Long fellow—“ Legend Beautiful.” 

Lowell—* ‘The Vision of Sir Launfal.” 
Tolstoy—“ Where Love Is, There God Is Also,” 
The Legend of St. Christopher. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 109 


Memory Work 


Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide, 

In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side; 

Some great cause, God’s new Messiah offering each the bloom 
or blight, 

Parts the goats upon the left hand, and the sheep upon the right; 

And the choice goes by forever ’twixt that darkness and that 
light. —Lowet, “ The Present Crisis.” 


Tue Lesson TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Helpfulness. When we help others for 
Jesus’ sake, we are helping him and he is pleased. ‘There- 
fore: 

We will try to do something each day for others, and to 
treat them as kindly as we would treat Jesus himself. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


THE CLass PRAYER 


O Jesus, we know how much thou hast loved us, and how 
much thou hast sacrificed for us. The motto of thy life was 
“Service.” Make us able, too, to serve others for thy sake, 
to be brave and courageous in doing those things that it is 
hard for us to do, if they will help others to know of thee, 
because they see that we are trying to be like thee. We ask 
in thy name. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


II Corinthians 5:10; 4:14; Revelation 7:9-17; Matthew 
10 :40-42 ; I Corinthians 8:12; John 14:2. 


Hymns TuHat May Ber USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“Lord Jesus, on the Holy Mount.” 

“To! He Comes, with Clouds Descending.” 

“ Jesus Came, the Heavens Adoring.” 

“The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns.” 


110 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


QUESTIONS For UsE IN THE MEETING 


1. Where else in the Bible did a voice from heaven de- 
clare that Jesus was God’s Son, in whom he was well 
pleased? 

2. What did Jesus find to do when he came down from 
the Mount of Transfiguration ? 

3. How can we doa kind act for Jesus? 

4. How will the King judge those whom he has before 
him at the Judgment Day? 

5. Did you ever see anyone whose face seemed to shine 
from an inner radiance? 


Topics For Discussion or REPoRTS 


1. What the World To-Day Thinks of Jesus. 

2. A Shining Face. 

3. Sunday’s Worship and Monday’s Everyday Duties. 
4, What We Expect After Death. Our Rewards. 

5. A Home in Heaven. John 14:2. 

6. Life. John 14:19. 

7. Work. Revelation 22:3. 

8. The Joy of Jesus’ Presence. I Corinthians 13:12. 
9. Longfellow’s “ Legend Beautiful.” 

10. Tolstoy’s “ Where Love Is, There God Is Also.” 


CHAPTER XIII 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE RAISING OF LAZARUS 
John, chapter 11 


Tur Memory VERSE 


“Jesus said unto her, [ am the resurrection, and the life: 
he that believeth on me, though he die, yet shall he live.” — 
Horny | ts:25: 


Tue LkEsson Story 


We do not hear very much about the personal friends of 
Jesus. We know that his disciples loved him and trusted 
him ; but we know, too, that the members of his own family 
did not believe in him fully. ‘They loved him, and feared for 
his safety, trying to prevent his going into danger, but it was 
not until after his death that we hear of his brother James 
as a leader among his followers. 

But there was one family whose members all seem to have 
loved and trusted Jesus, a little family, of which we know 
three members, who lived in Bethany, a village two miles 
from Jerusalem. Here Jesus was accustomed to stay when 
he went to Jerusalem, for it was conveniently near the city, 
and yet withdrawn from the crowds. 

Lazarus was the brother in this family, Martha and Mary 
the two sisters. Martha was the older sister—a bustling, 
busy housewife, who loved Jesus with all her heart, and who 
liked to show her love by doing something practical for 
him—preparing a good meal for him and his followers, for 
instance. Mary was different from Martha. She liked to 
listen to Jesus so well that sometimes she forgot to do the 
daily duties of the household when he was there. Once, 
when Jesus had been visiting them, Martha was provoked at 
Mary for her neglect in helping her, but Jesus had said that 
Mary had done well in listening to him. It was not neces- 


sak 


112 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


sary to have such great preparations for a feast. He would 
like it better if Martha, too, would listen to him, and not 
spend all her time cooking and working. One dish was 
enough to eat. He did not care for so much. 

One day when Jesus was across the Jordan, about twenty- 
five miles away, Lazarus was taken ill, The sisters knew 
where Jesus was, and they sent a messenger to him, with the 
word, “He whom thou lovest is sick.” Probably they 
thought that Jesus would come at once, or at least speak the 
word that would make their brother well. They had seen 
Jesus’ miracles; they knew that he could cure illness even 
when he was not present. 

But Jesus did not come. He continued for two days in 
the place where he was, teaching and healing. Then, finally, 
he said to his disciples, “ Let us go into Judza again.” 

The disciples knew that Jesus’ life was in danger in 
Judea, and they tried to persuade him not to go. “The 
Jews will kill you if you go to Jerusalem,” they said. 

Then Jesus told them that Lazarus had fallen asleep. At 
first they thought that he meant that Lazarus was better, 
but he told them plainly that he was dead, and that he must 
go to Bethany. 

Jesus had delayed two days before starting to Bethany, 
and he was probably one day on the way there, so that 
Lazarus must have died while the messenger was on the 
way to Jesus, for he had been dead four days when Jesus 
reached Bethany. His burial had taken place on the day 
of his death, as was the custom in Palestine: The family 
was well thought of, and rich, and many of their friends had 
gathered to comfort the two sisters. Probably they won- 
dered why Jesus did not come, and perhaps they may have 
thought it unkind of him. At last they heard that he was 
coming. Mary stayed quietly in the house, weeping, but 
Martha went to meet him. 

“ Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died,” 
Martha said in greeting Jesus. “And even now I know 
that, whatsoever thou shalt ask of God, God will give thee.” 

“Thy brother shall rise again,” said Jesus. 

Many of the Jews, particularly the Pharisees, believed in 
the resurrection of the dead at the last day. This was one 
difference between the Sadducees and the Pharisees. ‘The 





A ROCK TOMB IN A GARDEN—vw. H. BURHANS 





JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 115 


Sadducees did not believe in a resurrection. Martha evi- 
dently believed in it. She was not surprised at Jesus’ words. 
She said that she already knew this. 

Then Jesus spoke words that are very familiar to us 
to-day—the words of the Memory Verse, “I am the resur- 
rection, and the life: he that believeth on me, though he die, 
yet shall he live.” 

. Martha did not even yet fully understand, though she 
. trusted Jesus. She hurried back to the house to Mary, and 
told her that Jesus, who had waited in the place where 
Martha had met him, wanted her. Mary quickly obeyed the 
summons. It was the custom among the Jews to visit the 
grave frequently during the first few days after burial. The 
other mourners thought that she was going there to weep, 
and so they followed her. 

As she met Jesus, she greeted him with the same words 
that Martha had used—* Lord, if thou hadst been here, my 
brother had not died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, he 
was distressed. 

“Where have you laid him?” he asked. 

The family of Lazarus was rich, and they had their own 
rock tomb ina garden. ‘There were few cemeteries in Pales- 
tine, and these were used only by the very poor. The richer 
people had their own burial places. 

The mourners took Jesus to the grave of Lazarus. He 
was weeping, as they were. Some of them thought, “ How 
much he loved Lazarus!” but others wondered why he had 
not prevented his friend’s death. The party came to the 
cave where Lazarus was buried. In front of the opening a 
stone had been placed, and Jesus commanded that they take 
it away. 

Martha was practical even in her grief. She probably 
thought that Jesus wanted to see the face of Lazarus once 
more, for she had no idea what he intended to do. She 
knew that since Lazarus had been dead for four days, the 
body would have decayed in the warm climate of Palestine. 
So she objected to the proposal of Jesus, but he repeated his 
command, and the stone was rolled away. 

Jesus, as his custom was before performing a miracle, 
raised his eyes to heaven, and prayed, thanking God for 
what he was about to do. Then he called in a loud voice, 


114 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“ Lazarus, come forth.” And to the amazement of all who 
stood near, Lazarus did come forth, bound hand and foot 
with graveclothes, his face bound with a napkin, as the 
custom was. 

Jesus gave one last command, “ Loose him, and let him 
go,’ and Lazarus stepped forth alive. 

We have to imagine the joy and happiness that there was 
in the Bethany home that night, for the Bible does not tell 
us about it. But we can guess how gladly Martha prepared 
food for her brother, how she and Mary thanked Jesus for 
his great kindness to them, and how the news spread which 
turned the grief of the mourners to joy. There were those, 
though, among them who did not rejoice. They went 
straight to the Pharisees, and told them what they had seen 
Jesus do. 

We find in the Bible just a few references more to the 
family at Bethany. We know that Jesus was entertained at 
a feast at which they were present, just about a week before 
his crucifixion, John 12:1-11, that Martha served, and that 
Mary anointed him. Lazarus was at the feast, too, but the 
Jews were plotting to put him to death, and probably he had 
to leave his home in order to escape them. For we are sure 
that he and his sisters would have been mentioned among 
the friends who were faithful to Jesus at the time of the 
crucifixion, 1f he had been near Jerusalem. Surely he would 
have been with the disciples, surely he and his sisters would 
have been among the earnest members of the Early Church, 
if he and they had not been driven from Jerusalem and the 
vicinity. Wherever they were, however, they would always 
have loved Jesus, and trusted him. 


HANDWORK 


Can you make a model of a tomb in the garden, such as 
that in which Lazarus was buried, from plasticine or from 
clay? Make a round stone, to use in closing the entrance. 
Perhaps you can draw a picture of a tomb on the black- 
board. Remember that the tomb of Lazarus and that of 
Christ were much the same. 


NotesookK Work 
Enter this miracle in your notebook life of Christ. Call it 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 115 


“The Greatest Miracle of Christ—the Raising of Lazarus, 
Who Had Been Dead Four Days.” 


E,.XPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 
Do you know anyone who is sick, or in trouble, or in 
grief? Send such a person a little note, or a bunch of 
lowers to express your sympathy. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
EARNING THE RIGHT TO RULE 
Luke 19:11-13, 15-26 


Memory VERSE 


“He that is faithful in a very little is faithful also in 
much.”—Luke 16:10a. 


Tur Lesson Story 


As we learned in Chapter I, Palestine was ruled by the 
Romans. When Herod the Great died in 4 B.c., shortly after 
the birth of Christ, his kingdom was divided by his will 
among his sons. But this will was worth nothing until its 
provisions were confirmed by the emperor at Rome. Herod’s 
son, Archelaus, who inherited Judea, hurried off to Rome, 
where the emperor Augustus confirmed the will of Herod, 
and made Archelaus ruler of the Jews. 

So, when Jesus began a story, “ A certain nobleman went 
into a far country, to receive for himself a kingdom,” his 
listeners knew what he meant. Probably they thought that 
he was going to tell them a story about their rulers. But in- 
stead, the story was a parable—a story with a meaning. 
Jesus told it because he knew that his hearers expected him 
to become the King of the Jews, and he wanted to tell them 
once again that he was not the kind of king whom they ex- 
pected and that his Kingdom was not the kind of kingdom 
they were looking for. He knew that his death was coming 
soon, and he wanted to teach them once more how he ex- 


116 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


pected them to live when he had left them. And so he told 
them the parable of the Pounds. 

There is another of Jesus’ parables which is much like 
this. It is called “the parable of the Talents.” Matthew 
25:14-30. But though there are many points in which the 
two parables are similar, there are some differences. ‘They 
were spoken at different times. ‘The parable of the Pounds 
was spoken as Jesus was about to go to Jerusalem for the 
last passover; the parable of the Talents was spoken later 
in the week. In the parable of the Pounds, each man re- 
ceived the same amount of money; in the parable of the 
Talents, the amounts were different. The talent is a great 
sum of money, and a pound amounts to only about sixteen 
dollars, which was really a very small sum for investment. 
You can find other differences if you read both parables. 

In Jesus’ story of the pounds, the nobleman knew that he 
would be away from home for some time. He called ten of 
his servants to him, and gave to each man a pound, telling 
them to trade with the money until he came back. Then he 
said good-by, and went to a far country, where his right to 
rule was confirmed. After a long time he returned to his 
home. He called his servants to him, and asked what they 
had done with the money he had intrusted to them. The 
first man made a good report, “ Lord, thy pound hath made 
ten pounds more.” Of course the master was pleased, and 
he immediately expressed his pleasure—“‘ Well done, thou 
good servant: because thou wast found faithful in a very 
little, have thou authority over ten cities ”’—which meant, of 
course, that the lord made this faithful servant a great man. 
Then the second servant came. He, too, pleased the master, 
for his pound had made five pounds more, and he was made 
ruler over five cities. But when another servant was sum- 
moned before the ruler, he brought back just the pound that 
he had received—no more, no less. And his excuse was 
very poor. “I laid up your pound in a napkin,” he said, “ be- 
cause I was afraid that if I traded with it I would lose it. 
And I knew that if I lost it, you would punish me.” ‘The 
master was angry, for he had especially ordered the men, 
when he went away, to trade with their money. “ Out of 
your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant,” he 
said. ‘“ You knew that I am a stern man. If you were 


JUNTOR CHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 117 


afraid of me, why did you not put my money in the bank, 
where it would have been safe, but where I would at least 
have had interest?”’ And then he ordered that the money 
be taken from this servant, and given to the man who already 
had ten times as much, for “ unto every one that hath shall 
be given; but from him that hath not, even that which he 
hath shall be taken away.” 

These last words of Jesus seem hard to understand, but 
when we think over the meaning of the whole parable, we 
can see what they mean. Jesus himself was the nobleman. 
He was going to leave the world, and go back to his Father 
in heaven. By the pound which the nobleman in the story 
gave to his servants, Jesus meant the opportunity to spread 
the good tidings of salvation to everyone in the world. All 
the disciples had an equal chance to hear and understand 
Jesus’ message; all had an equal chance to obey. So the 
lesson of the parable was that if the disciples tried to follow 
Christ in this world, to do as he wanted them to do, to 
spread the gospel of salvation, they would find that greater 
and greater opportunities came to them even in this world, 
and that they would have a great reward in heaven. 

In the parable of the Pounds all the servants had an equal 
sum of money; in the parable of the Talents, they were given 
different amounts. But the message of the two parables is 
much the same—if you use what God has given you, it in- 
creases; if you neglect to use your ability or your oppor- 
tunity, you lose it. For instance, you have a talent for music, 
but if you never practice, you will soon forget all you do 
know; if you use your talent, it will become greater and 
greater. So, the more you study, the more easily you will 
be able’to learn. You have a talent for languages, but if 
you never study, your neighbor, who hasn’t so much talent, 
but who works and uses what he has, will get better marks 
than you do. 

So, use your talents as Jesus taught, and you will increase 
them more and more. That was one of the lessons which 
Jesus left to his followers. And if you do this, Jesus will 
be pleased, and will reward you for doing as he commanded 
his followers to do. “ Unto every one that hath shall be 
given; but from him that hath not, even that which he hath 
shall be taken away.” 


118 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


THE Lesson TRuTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Increasing Ability. If we use the abilities 
and powers which God has given us, they will increase; if 
we neglect to use them, they will decrease. Therefore: 

We will do our best, so that we shall be worthy to have 
greater opportunities given us, and a final reward in heaven. 


AN OUTLINE oF THIS PARABLE FOR THE BLACKBOARD 


ue heeNoblenan ene christ. 

TherbartCounthy a The Heavenly Home. 

he; servantsun eee ern God’s People. 

‘hesRoundswawm tees Opportunities God Has Given Each 
to Serve Him. 

Dhesinedonmen ese Christ’s Kingdom on Earth. 


The Reward of Faith- The Reward of Faithfulness—God’s 
fulness—The Right Blessings and Greater Opportuni- 
to Rule. ties on Earth, a Home in Heaven.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
THE CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father who art in heaven, we thank thee for the 
knowledge that if we do right and try to use the opportuni- 
ties and abilities which thou hast given us, we shall see thee 
face to face, and be with thee in the life hereafter. Help 
us to do the things we should, which will please thee and thy 
Son, Jesus Christ. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


John 14:2, 19, 20; I Corinthians 15 :12-28, 50-58; Revela- 
tion 22:1-5; Matthew 25 :14-30. 


Hymns Tuat May Br USED IN CONNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


“T Hear Thy Welcome Voice.” 
“ Now I Hear My Saviour Calling.” 


PON IORPCHURCHOSCHOOU LESSONS 119 


miebrledgeiy Spirit Loyal.” 
“True-Hearted, Whole-Hearted, Faithful and Loyal.” 
“ Hear the Captain Clearly Calling.” 


QUESTIONS For Usz IN THE MEETING 


1. On what other occasion than at the grave of Lazarus 
is it said that Jesus wept? 

2. What is the shortest verse in the Bible? It is given in 
your week-day lesson material. 

3. How far is fifteen furlongs, John 11:18? 

4. Give some of the differences between the parable of 
the Pounds and the parable of the Talents. 

5. What king of Judea had gone to a “ far country ” not 
long before this, to have his father’s will confirmed? 

6. How can you best use your talents and opportunities ? 


Topics For Discussion or REportS 


1. The Bethany Family. 

2. Funerals and Mourning in the Fast. 

3. Tell the Story of Lazarus as if You Were Mary, 
Martha, one of the Jewish Mourners, Thomas, or Lazarus 
Himself. 

4. What Was Mary’s Talent? Martha’s? Did Lazarus 
Use His Opportunity to Tell of Jesus After His Restoration 
to Life? 

5. What Opportunity Do Junior Boys and Girls Have to 
Spread the Gospel? 

6. How Can I Best Use My Talents and Opportunities? 


CLSUSIEAM EAE, Oo 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE TRIUMPHAL LOIN Taye 
Luke 19:47; Matthew 26:3-5 


Tur MrmMory VERSE 


‘Hosanna; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the 
Lord.”—Mark 11 :9b. 


Tuer Lesson STORY 


It was the day after Jesus had been entertained by Simon 
the leper at Bethany, and anointed by Mary the sister of 
Lazarus. ‘The Pharisees were becoming more and more dis- 
turbed, and were plotting to kill Lazarus. He had been one 
of the guests of Simon, and Martha had served the meal. 

It was the time of the passover, April 30. Jesus planned 
to go to Jerusalem, to the Temple, for the feast. As he ap- 
proached the city, he sent two of his disciples ahead to the 
little village of Bethphage, just outside the city. ‘“ There,” 
he said, “you will find a colt tied, upon which no one has 
yet ridden. Untie him, and bring him to me. If anyone 
asks you what you are doing, tell him, ‘The Lord hath need 
of him.’ ” 

The disciples did as Jesus commanded, and when the 
owners of the colt heard that it was Jesus who wanted it, 
they gave it gladly. The disciples threw their garments over 
the colt, and Jesus mounted upon it. So he rode toward the 
city. 

Now, it had been prophesied hundreds of years before by 
the prophet Zechariah, Zechariah 9:9, that the King of glory 
should enter Jerusalem in this way—“ Rejoice greatly, O 
daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, 
thy king cometh unto thee; he is just, and having salvation ; 
lowly, and riding upon an ass, even upon a colt the foal of 


120 


JUNTIORVCHORCH SCHOOL LESSONS el 


an ass.” ‘The road to Jerusalem was crowded with people 
going to the passover, and many of them knew this prophecy. 
Carried away by enthusiasm, they proclaimed that Jesus was 
King. They threw down their garments before him, so that 
he might ride over them. ‘They pulled branches from the 
palm trees along the way, and strewed them before him, and 
waved them high in the air. People in the city heard the 
rejoicing, and came out into the road, too, to join in the pro- 
cession. So they advanced to Jerusalem, across the Mount 
of Olives and the Brook Kidron, which separates the Mount 
of Olives from the city—up, up the hill to the Golden Gate, 
praising God and singing aloud, “ Blessed is the King that 
cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory 
in the highest.” Singing, they passed through the Golden 
Gate, on the eastern side of the city wall—that gate which 
was found walled up at the time of the Crusades, and which 
is opened only on Palm Sunday—on through the city, and 
up the hill to the Temple. 

The Pharisees were becoming more and more disturbed. 
“Teacher, rebuke thy disciples,’ they said to Jesus. But 
Westiseretused to) do: this.” li tell you; che said, “that 1f 
these shall hold their peace, the stones will cry out.” 

As they drew near the city, Jesus wept. He knew that 
God would destroy it for the people’s final refusal to ac- 
knowledge him as the Messiah, and that its punishment was 
at hand. Forty years later this punishment did come, and 
the Romans under Titus destroyed the city so completely 
that Jesus’ prophecy was fulfilled—there was not one stone 
left upon another. 

When Jesus reached the Temple, he went in; at the be- 
ginning of his ministry, Chapter VIII, he had driven out 
from the Temple the money changers and those who bought 
and sold. Now once more he cast them out, saying, “ My 
house shall be a house of prayer. but ye have made it a den 
of robbers.” 

All day he remained in the Temple, teaching and preach- 
ing, doing such wonderful things that the children in the 
Temple cried out with rejoicing, ‘““ Hosanna to the son of 
David,” and causing such amazement and such joy that the 
priests and the scribes were filled with consternation, and 
planned to destroy him. “ But we will wait until the feast 


122 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOE LESSONS 


is over and the people have gone to their homes,” they said 
craftily. “He is too popular to take prisoner when there 
are so many people in the city. We will be able later to 
destroy him more secretly.” 

So they did not interfere with Jesus just then. He 
preached and taught and healed during the day, and at night 
went quietly back to Bethany, where he stayed with those 
who loved him. 

The day upon which Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumph— 
the triumphal entry—was the Sunday before his crucifixion. 
Sunday, April 2 a.p. 30. For many, many centuries the day 
has been called “ Palm Sunday,” on account of the palms 
strewn before Jesus at the time of the triumphal entry. 
Even to-day our churches are decorated with palms, on 
Palm Sunday. The week which followed was the last week 
of Jesus’ life. We call this week “ Passover Week,” from 
the Latin word patior, which means “to suffer.” Jesus suf- 
fered many things during that week for our sakes, and at 
the close of the week he died for us on the cross. And just 
a week after Palm Sunday, he rose in glory on the first glad 
Easter Day. And that is why we who live in Christian 
countries, have almost from the beginning of the Christian 
Church, celebrated Sunday as our day of worship and rest, 
instead of Saturday, which is the sacred day of the Jews. 


HANDWORK 


On your sand table and on the map, work out the geog- 
raphy of this lesson. Make a high hill to indicate the hill 
on which the Temple stood. Then, indicate, very roughly, 
the city wall with the Golden Gate at the east. To the east, 
represent the Mount of Olives, with the Brook Kidron be- 
tween it and the city. Make a road leading from the Temple, 
down the hill, through the Golden Gate, across the Brook 
Kidron, along the southern slope of the Mount of Olives, 
and so to Bethphage and Bethany. 


Notresook Work 


Enter the triumphal entry in your notebook life of Christ, 
putting the date, April 2, a.p. 30. 





THE GOLDEN GATE, THROUGH WHICH CHRIST ENTERED 
JERUSALEM AT THE TIME OF THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY 


ff 





JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 123 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Are there any of the members of your class who can sing 
well enough to learn Faure’s ‘The Palms’”’? If so, it would 
be interesting to have them sing it at the Expressional Ses- 
sion of the class. 


Memory Work 


The words which the people sang at the time of the tri- 
umphal entry were part of the “ Hallel,’ Psalms 113 to 118, 
which were always sung at the passover. ‘These particular 
words were supposed to apply to the Messiah, and were very 
significant when sung at this time. Learn Matthew 21:9 and 
Psalm 118 :26. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
A PARABLE IN ACTION 
Luke 22:7-13; John 13:1-17 


Mermory VERSE 


“For I have given you an example, that ye also should 
do as I have done to you.”—John 13:15. 


Tue Lesson Story 


During the days of the passover week, Jesus had gone 
back and forth between Jerusalem and Bethany, spending 
most of the daylight hours in Jerusalem, and resting at night 
in the quiet home in Bethany among his faithful friends. 

On Sunday he had gone to Jerusalem in triumph; on Mon- 
day he had again returned and preached and taught in the 
Temple ; on Tuesday he had given his last instructions to the 
people. Wednesday, it is thought, he spent quietly in 
Bethany. On Thursday, the first day of the feast, the dis- 
ciples came to him, Matthew 26:17, and asked him, “ Where 
wilt thou that we make ready for thee to eat the passover?”’ 
The city at passover time was so crowded that it was neces- 
sary to make provision beforehand for a place for the sup- 
per. Then, too, the special meal must be prepared—the 
lamb, the unleavened bread, the bitter herbs, which were the 


124 JUNIOR CHURCH SCOOT LESSONS 


reminder to the Jews of the hurried flight from Egypt and 
how God had saved them and brought them to the Promised 
Land. 

Jesus knew that the end of his life was fast approaching. 
He wanted to have this last passover undisturbed with his 
disciples. So he had made preparations which none but the 
most faithful of his followers could know about. Now he 
sent Peter and John ahead, telling them to go to the city, 
where they would meet a man carrying a pitcher of water. 
They were to follow him to his house. There they should 
tell the owner of the house that the Teacher had need of his 
guest chambers as a place in which to eat the passover. And 
the man would put at their disposal a large, upper room, 
furnished suitably for the meal. The disciples obeyed Jesus’ 
directions, and found everything as he had said. ‘There, in 
the large, upper room, they prepared the passover meal. 

It seems to us as we look back on the deeds of the dis- 
ciples that they were acting very strangely. Even after all 
that Jesus had taught them they were quarreling with one 
another about who should be greatest in Jesus’ Kingdom! 
They were quarreling so bitterly that they refused to wash 
one another’s feet as they entered the room. ‘They had 
walked over the dusty road from Bethany—two miles—and 
of course their feet, protected only by sandals, were dusty. 
It was not right for them to sit down to eat in such a state, 
for the Jews were very particular about cleansing, and 
always a host supplied water for his guests to wash. You 
remember, Chapter VIII, that large jars were always kept 
at the entrance of the house for the purpose. Usually, in 
well-to-do families, a servant washed the feet, or a child 
performed this duty for his father. Among the disciples, 
one did it for the other, usually, for they were poor, and had 
no servant. 

But this time they seem to have been quarreling so 
violently that they forgot even the common courtesies of the 
land. Surely Jesus must have been disappointed that this 
was the result of all his teaching! But once more he proved 
his love and patience. Once more he showed them how he 
wanted them to do. He rose and laid aside the long, outer 
garment which he wore, and girded himself with a towel. 
Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the 


Pot ORR HU RG ae SCHOOL LESSONS 125 


disciples’ feet—he, the Lord and Master, performing that 
lowly task, which they had refused to perform for one 
another ! 

Peter, as usual, spoke impulsively. He thought that he 
was too important to wash the feet of the other disciples, but 
he did not want Jesus to wash his feet. 

“Lord, dost thou wash my feet?” he asked. 

“What I do thou knowest not now,” Jesus answered, 
“but thou shalt understand hereafter.” 

“Thou shalt never wash my feet,” said Peter. You see, 
he was the same old Peter, just the same impulsive man that 
he had been on Mount Hermon when he confessed that Jesus 
was the Messiah, and yet dared to contradict and try to cor- 
rect him. 

“Tf I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me,” said 
Jesus, and then Peter completely changed his point of view. 
He really loved Jesus. ‘Lord, not my feet only,” he said, 
“but also my hands and my head.” 

But Jesus taught him once more, patiently. “ He that is 
bathed needeth not save to wash his feet,” he said; that is, 
only the dust which had gotten on their feet in passing along 
the dusty road must be washed off. “ Ye are clean, but not 
all.’ And with these words Jesus meant more than the dis- 
ciples thought. He did not mean only that they were clean 
in body; he meant that they were clean and true in heart— 
all the disciples but one—Judas, who was about to betray 
him. 

‘As Jesus finished the task he had assumed, he sat down 
again, and again taught the disciples the lesson of service, 
which he had tried to teach them over and over again. He, 
the Lord and Teacher, had washed their feet. They should 
wash one another’s feet. He had given them an example, 
for the servant is not greater than his Lord. He had come 
to them not to be ministered unto, but to minister, not to be 
served. but to serve. ‘They were to follow his example; they 
knew these things. Blessed were they if they did them. 


PUTTING THE LESSON IN THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 
Jesus gave to the disciples and to us the example of 
service. We can serve him by serving others in his name. 
Can you do a kindness to some one in Jesus’ name? 


126 JUNIOR, CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS@ 


Ministers, missionaries, Red Cross workers, those who do 
all sorts of Christian work, are following Christ’s example. 
Nothing is too lowly or too unpleasant for them to do for 
others for his sake. Probably you can do something this 
week which will be a service for his sake. Try to find such 
a service, even if it is something that is hard and unpleasant 
for you. 


Tue Lesson TRutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAw 


The Law of Service. God sent his Son into the world to 
save the world, and to serve others. We want to follow his 
example. Therefore: 

We will try to minister unto others and serve them in his 
name. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


THe CrLass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we thank thee for the gift of thy 
Son Jesus to us and to all the world. We thank thee that 
even once in all his life of service he enjoyed the praise of 
the people as a King, and that the children, too, showed their 
love for him in songs of joy. We thank thee for the example 
of service that he has given us, and ask that we may follow 
that example in ways most pleasing to thee and to him. 
Amen. 


VERSES For USE IN THE MEETING 


Isaiah 62:11; Zechariah 9:9; Mark 10:45; Psalm 118:26; 
Acts 20:35; Philippians 2:8, 9. 


Hymns TuHat May Bg Usep In CoNNECTION WITH 
THE MEETING 


Children of the Heavenly King.” 
“We March, We March to Victory.” 
“ Brightly Gleams Our Banner.” 

“O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee.” 
“Take My Life and Let It Be.” 


JUNLTOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS {27 


QUESTIONS FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What did the triumphal entry mean to Jesus? What 
did it mean to the Twelve? What did it mean to the people ? 

2. Is the church building to-day ever used in ways of 
which Jesus would disapprove? How? 

3. What did the feast of the passover commemorate ? 

4. Why do we no longer celebrate the passover ? 

5. How did Jesus rebuke the disciples for their quarrel- 
someness ? 

6. Who else besides ministers and missionaries can serve 
Christ acceptably ? 


Topics FoR DiscussION AND REPORTS 


1. What Jesus Did During the Last Week of His Life. 

22) the Golden Gate. 

3. Why Sunday Is the Sacred Day in Christian Countries 
Instead of the Jewish Sabbath. 

pee Loew Witterciices, between. Dhis! Cleansing of the 
Temple and That Given in John, Chapter 2. 

5. The Beginning of the Passover. 

6. The Celebration of the Passover. 

7. How the Great Crowds in Jerusalem for the Passover 
Were Taken Care Of. 

8. Christ the Servant of All. 

9. How I Can Serve, Wherever My Life Work May Be. 


A SERVANT OF Gop 


Jesus, by his service to the disciples at the Last Supper, 
showed them that the Son of Man came into the world not 
to be ministered unto, but to minister. He wants his follow- 
ers everywhere to serve those who need their help, and he 
showed by the washing of the disciples’ feet that nothing we 
can do for others, in his name, is too small a service for him 
to notice. 

The story is told that Robert Morrison, the great mission- 
ary to China, needed help in his work. He sent to the mis- 
sionary society in England, with which ke was connected, 
and asked that another missionary should be sent out. 
While the society was considering the question, a young man 


128 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


from the country, who seemed rough in manner and unedu- 
cated, offered himself for the work. The members of the 
society did not feel that he was a suitable man to go. Finally 
they decided to tell him that they did not think him fit to be 
a missionary, but that if he would like to go out as a servant 
to the missionary, they would send him. 

This was done. The young man was not offended. He 
must have remembered how Jesus had acted as a servant of 
the disciples, for he answered calmly: “ Very well; I will go 
as a servant. I am willing to be a hewer of wood and a 
drawer of water, or to do anything to help the cause of my 
heavenly Master.” 

That young man who thought no service too little for 
Jesus’ sake, who went to China as a servant, soon became a 
great and famous missionary. He was Dr. Milne, whose 
name stands with that of Robert Morrison in the translation 
of the Bible into Chinese. God used him to do a great work, 
because he was willing to do unimportant work at first. 


GEA PLE Raa: 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE PASSOVER 
Exodus 12 :1-28 


Mrmory VERSE 


“For our passover also hath been sacrificed, even Christ.” 
—I Corinthians 5:7b. 


Tue Lesson Story 


About thirteen hundred years before the days of Jesus, 
the Israelites had escaped from Egypt where, for four 
hundred years, they had been the slaves of the people of 
Pharaoh. At last God freed his people from this slavery. 
Moses was told how the children of Israel were to 
be led to the land which God had promised Abraham that 
they should have. And God told Moses, too, that the 
people should always hold in memory the time of their es- 
_cape, and should tell to their children and their children’s 
children the story of the night when the angel of death 
passed over the homes of the Israelites, which were marked 
with the blood of a lamb, but destroyed the first-born in 
every Egyptian household. | 

God gave to Moses exact directions concerning what was 
to be done—how on a certain day, the tenth day of the month, 
which was after this to be the first month of the Jewish year, 
each household was to procure a lamb; or 1f the household 
was very small, several were to join together. The lamb 
was to be a year old, without blemish. It was to be kept 
until the fourteenth day, and then it was to be killed. Some 
of the blood was to be used to mark the side posts and the 
lintel (the top) of the doorway. The meat of the lamb was 
to be roasted and eaten, every bit, with unleavened bread 
(bread not raised with yeast), and bitter herbs. They were 
to eat their meal in readiness to depart, when the signal 
came. 


129 


130 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


The people of Israel did as God directed. ‘They ate a 
hurried meal as Moses told them, of roasted lamb, and 
herbs, and unleavened bread. ‘They waited, staff in hand, 
for the hour of deliverance. So, when the message came 
from Pharaoh that they were allowed to go, they were ready. 
They started on their journey in haste. 

All through the history of the Jews, the memory of this 
passover feast, as it came to be called—the memorial of the 
time of the escape from Egypt—has been celebrated. In 
the month which is called Abib, or Nisan, which corresponds 
to our March or April, all loyal Jews, even to-day, celebrate 
this feast. In the time of Jesus it was celebrated in Jerusa- 
lem with wonderful ceremonies. Every man and woman in 
all Palestine who could possibly do so came to Jerusalem. 
Sometimes there were as many as two million pilgrims in the 
great city. All the homes of the inhabitants were thrown 
open to visitors. People met their old friends and relatives 
and there was great and solemn festivity. 

At the time of Christ there were very many rules which 
were kept in celebrating the passover. It began at the ap- 
pearance of the first three stars in the sky on the eve of 
the passover—the evening before the fourteenth Nisan. A 
solemn search was made through every. house in Palestine, 
with a lighted candle, for any leaven that might be hidden 
or have fallen aside by accident. This was all destroyed 
afterwards. No Jew ate anything containing leaven from 
about eleven o’clock on the morning of the day before the 
feast. As a public notification of the time for not eating 
leavened food, two cakes were placed on a bench in the 
Temple. One of these was removed when the time for eat- 
ing leaven was past; the other was removed when the time 
for destroying all leaven had come. 

Every family in Jerusalem had before this provided a 
lamb for themselves. ‘This lamb had been examined by the 
priests, and had been pronounced free from blemish. At 
the hour of the evening sacrifice the passover lambs were 
slain in the Temple. “The worshipers were admitted in 
three divisions within the Court of the Priests. When the 
first company had entered, the massive Nicanor Gates— 
which led from the Court of the Women to that of Israel | 
—and the other side gates into the Court of the Priests, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 131 


were closed. A threefold blast from the priests’ trumpets 
intimated that the lambs were being slain. This each Israelite 
did for himself. ... In two rows the officiating priests 
stood, up to the great altar of burnt offering. As one caught 
up the blood from the dying lamb in a golden bowl, he handed 
it to his colleague, receiving in turn an empty bowl; and so 
the blood was passed to the great altar, where it was jerked 
in one jet at the base of the altar. While this was going on, 
the Hallel was being chanted by the Levites.” 

After this solemn ceremony, the lamb was laid on staves ; 
the parts which were to be burnt on the altar were removed, 
and the worshiper carried away the rest. The lamb was 
roasted on a pomegranate spit that passed through it from 
the mouth to the tail. Special care was taken, in roasting 
the lamb, that it did not touch the oven. 

Besides the lamb, there were cakes of unleavened bread, 
wine and bitter herbs. The unleavened bread reminded the 
people that when they had fled from Egypt, they had been 
in such haste that they had carried away their bread with- 
out waiting for it to rise. The wine was the ordinary red 
wine of the country. The bitter herbs stood for the bitter 
experiences of the people in Egypt. There were five kinds. 
These were dipped once in salt water or vinegar, and another 
time in a thick mixture made of nuts, raisins, and apples, 
which was supposed to stand for the clay with which the 
people of Israel worked in Figypt. 

Such solemn preparations were made for the passover by 
every family in Jerusalem. It was such preparations as 
these that had been made before the last passover supper 
which Jesus ate with his disciples. 


HANDWORK 


Draw again the plan of the Temple, as it was given in 
your earlier lessons. Mark the parts which are mentioned 
in this lesson. 


NoresBook WorK 


Copy in your notebook the words of Question 37 of the 
Intermediate Catechism: 
“What is the Lord’s Supper?” 


132 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“The Lord’s Supper is the sacred use of bread and of the 
cup, as appointed by the Lord Jesus, in which, in thankful 
remembrance of him, we show forth his death and, in com- 
munion with one another, by faith partake of him.” 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


The next time you go to church on Communion Sunday, 
watch the service carefully, and see how the Lord’s Supper 
has taken the place of the Jewish passover. 


’MeEmory Work 


Learn the verse which follows our Memory Verse, I Co- 
rinthians 5:8. “ Wherefore let us keep the feast, not with 
old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, 
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
ANSUD ION OYS) SIDDE EI OIA 


Matthew 26:20-30; Mark 14:17-26; John 13:21-27; 
I Corinthians 11 :23-26. 


Tur Memory VERSE 


“The Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed 
took bread; and when he had.given thanks, he brake it, and 
said, This is my body, which is for you: this do in remem- 
brance of me.’”—I Corinthians 11:23, 24. 


Tuer LESSON STORY 


Jesus had washed the disciples’ feet, and they were all 
seated at the passover table. This was shaped like the 


capital letter U, or like a hollow rectangle, with one side. 


open. Jesus probably sat at the center of the side opposite 
the opening. On one side of him Judas probably sat; on the 
other side was John. 

Jesus spoke. “ Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall 
betray me.” His followers were astonished. ‘They were 


—— Se 


JUNIOR: CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 133 


SOrLOWLUlL LOOM n lomteleisords. es shite lr sy) One vatter 
another asked the question. And Jesus answered, “ He that 
dipped his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray 
me.” Judas, who had already plotted with the high priest 
and the scribes, asked with the rest, “Is it I, Rabbi?” Jesus 
answered, ‘‘ Thou hast said ” [which is the same as “ Yes ”’]. 
He must have spoken softly so that the other disciples did 
not overhear. Then he added, “ What thou doest, do 
quickly.” Judas could not remain longer with Jesus after 
that. He went out of the room, quickly. 

Jesus was alone with his faithful disciples. He took 
some of the unleavened bread of the feast. He broke it and 
blessed it, and passed it to the disciples, saying, “ Take, eat; 
this is my body.” ‘Then he took a cup of wine and gave it 
to them, saying, “ Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of 
the covenant, which is poured out for many unto remission 
of sins.” 

Lovingly Jesus talked with his disciples. “ You all shall 
be offended in me, this very night,’ he said. ‘ The shep- 
herd will be taken, and the sheep will be scattered.” 

Peter, as usual, spoke out. ~ Lord,” he said, “ whatever 
happens, I shall be faithful and loyal. I will never leave 
you.” 

Jesus looked at him sorrowfully. “ You think so now, 
Peter,” he said, “but before the cock crows you will deny 
me three times.” ‘Then Jesus spoke most wonderfully com- 
forting words to his disciples. He told them that although 
he himself must leave them, he would send to them the 
Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who would lead them into right 
paths. He prayed a most wonderful prayer—the prayer 
which is given in the seventeenth chapter of John. And 
then, having given his last message to his disciples, Jesus led 
them out from the upper room, across the Brook Kidron, to 
the Garden of Gethsemane, on the Mount of Olives, where 
he knew that he would be betrayed. 

Ever since the days of Jesus, Christians have celebrated 
the Lord’s Supper as a memorial to him. They have eaten 
the bread and drunk the wine as he asked his followers to 
do. The Presbyterian Church has two sacraments—bar- 
tism and the Lord’s Supper. When you were a baby you 
were baptized. Now that you are old enough to think for 


134 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


yourself, you can become a member of the Church and par- 
take of the Lord’s Supper. If you love Jesus it is your duty 
to declare openly to the world that you are a follower of 
Jesus. You will show your love for him in this way, and 
show to the world, also, that you are his follower. ‘The 
words of our Memory Verse tell us what he said: “ This 
do in remembrance of.me.’ You Juniors are not too young 
to do as he has asked you to’do, and to become members of 
his Church. 


PuttINc THE LkEsson INtTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. The Lord’s Supper is a memorial of Christ’s death for 
the people of the world. Christians partake of the Lord’s 
Supper because he asked his followers to do so. 


2. Another name for the Lord’s Supper is the “Com- 
munion.” ‘This word comes from the same Latin word that 
our word “communicate”? comes from. It means “ to send 
messages back and forth.” “To hold communion” with 
anyone is to tell that person our desires and to try to find 
out his desires. 

3. When we pray we speak to God; when we read the 
Bible or hear it read, God speaks to us. 


4. We should never go to church thoughtlessly or care- 
lessly on any Sunday. But particularly on Communion Sun- 
day we should be reverent and thoughtful. We should re- 
member always that we have the Lord’s Supper in memory 
af Christ’s death, and that he commanded it. 


5. The Lord’s Supper has been a comfort to thousands of 
Christians in all times. In it we draw very near to God, and 
he draws very near to us. 


Mermory WorkK 


“Break thou the bread of life, 

Dear Lord, to me, 

As thou didst break the loaves 
Beside the sea; 

Beyond the sacred page 
I seek thee, Lord; 

My spirit pants for thee, 
O living Word. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS P35 


“Bless thou the truth, dear Lord, 

To me—to me— 

As thou didst bless the bread 
By Galilee; 

Then shall all bondage cease, 
All fetters fall; 

And I shall find my peace, 
My All in all.” 


Tur Lesson TrutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


Christ, our passover Lamb, was sacrificed for us. He 
gave his life for us. In return, we should devote our lives 
to the service of others, for his sake. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


POW ESO UL DICOM Eel Os THE LORDS 
SHEN PA DIR 


WCGormtiianss lle 23-29 


THE CLAss PRAYER 


“ Almighty God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires 
known, and from whom no secrets are hid, cleanse the 
thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, 
that we may worthily magnify thy holy name, through Jesus 
Christ our Lord.” 


VerRSES For USE IN THE MEETING 


Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:19, 20; He- 
Diewewelon Loree Corinthians or/n LOL 62817-9112 3229% 
II Corinthians 13:14; Revelation 19:9. 


Hymwns For USE IN THE MEETING 


‘Break [Chou the Bread of Life.’ 
Hymns from “The Hymnal,” under the section ‘“ The 
Communion,” numbers 324 to 340. 


136 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


QUESTIONS FoR UsE IN THE MEETING 


1. What is the connection between the Jewish passover 
and the Lord’s Supper? 

2. What are the two sacraments of the Presbyterian 
Church? 

3. Where in the Bible are the four accounts of the estab- 
lishment of the Lord’s Supper? 

4. Give in order, as far as you can tell, the events be- 
tween the time when Jesus and the disciples came to the 
upper room, and the time when they left it. 

5. Why should the followers of Jesus partake of the 
Lord’s Supper? 

6. What does it mean to them? 

7. Why are Communion Sundays the most solemn Sun- 
days in our Church services? 


Topics FoR Discussion or REPORTS 


The Two Sacraments of the Presbyterian Church. 
How We Should Partake of the Lord’s Supper. 
Joining the Church. 

Juniors and the Lord’s Supper. 

The Meaning of the Bread and the Wine. 

My Responsibility in Regard to the Lord’s Supper. 
Preparing for the Lord’s Supper. 


SESS petr 


yy (Mty/y vy S MQ 
Z Wy » 
Meizwis Wy pi 















Damascus ’ 
Gate StStephens 
Gate 


Lower City 







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Jaffa Gate Moriah 


aoipry qi Jo AatieA 


Upper City 


CHARTER I 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
IN THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE, - 
Matthew 26 :36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22 :39-46. 
THE Memory VERSE 
* Not as I will, but as thou wilt.”—Matthew 26:39. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Jesus led his disciples—the loyal Eleven—down from the 
upper room where the Lord’s Supper had been instituted, 
through the streets of Jerusalem, out of the city toward the 
Mount of Olives. The little party crossed the Brook 
Kidron and came to a place to which Jesus frequently went 
—the Garden of Gethsemane. 

‘There are two places which claim to be the original Garden 
of Gethsemane. One of these is near the foot of the Mount 
of Olives. The other is farther up the slope. The word 
“Gethsemane” means “ oil press,” and both of the places 
contain very old olive trees, though authorities tell us that 
even the oldest of these could not have been there in the 
time of Jesus, nineteen hundred years ago. Moreover, his- 
tory says that at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem 
in A. D. /Q, the armies of Titus and Vespasian cut down all 


137 


138 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


the olive trees near the city. In one of the places identified 
as the Garden, there are, however, eight tremendous olive 
trees which are many centuries old. 

Jesus led his disciples to this quiet spot, where, the Bible 
tells us, it was his custom to go. He told eight of the dis- 
ciples to remain in a certain part of the Garden. ‘Then, tak- 
ing with him Peter, James, and John he went to a more 
secluded place. He told these three—the three whom he 
trusted most—that he was very sad. He asked them to watch 
with him. 

Then he went away even from these loved disciples, a 
little distance, and began to pray. He knew that the hour 
of his death was soon coming; he felt that he was bearing 
the wickedness and the sin of the whole world. He prayed 
in great sorrow to God, “ My Father, if it be possible, let 
this cup pass away from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but 
as thou wilt.” He would have been glad not to suffer and 
yet he was willing to die if that was God’s will for him. 
He prayed so earnestly that instead of sweat from his fore- 
head, great drops of blood fell upon the ground. 

Jesus had asked Peter and James and John to watch with 
him. And yet, when he returned to them after he had 
prayed to his heavenly Father, he found all three of them 
asleep! Just as they had slept on the Mount of Transfigura- 
tion, they slept in the Garden of Gethsemane! Jesus must 
have felt grieved. He roused Peter?and askedya Wy ia 
could ye not watch with me one hour?” But even then he 
found an excuse for them, and said, “ The spirit indeed is 
willing, but the flesh is weak.” 

A second time Jesus prayed. In his first petition he had 
asked that he be spared the suffering which was to come to 
him. In the second prayer he asked for courage to bear it. 
“ My Father, if this cannot pass away, except I drink it, thy 
will be done,” he said. After this prayer he returned again 
to the disciples, and again he found them sleeping. A third 
time he prayed in the same words. But in the third prayer 
Jesus had found peace. He was ready to suffer and die. 
He returned a third time to the disciples with the words, 
“ Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at 
hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of 
sinners.” 





‘sed by permission of W. H. Burhans. 


THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE 


va 


oe 





7 A 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 139 


Judas was close by. The hour of Jesus’ suffering in the 
Garden was over. He was ready to suffer the trial and 
death which were before him. 


HANDWORK 


Using the map given with this lesson as a guide, make on 
the sand table a plan of Jerusalem and its surrounding 
places. Mark the Mount of Olives and the place where the 
Garden of Gethsemane may have been. You can add to this 
map during the remaining lessons about Jesus. 


NoteBook Work 
Copy the plan of Jerusalem in your notebook. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Are you like Peter and James and John when you have a 
duty to perform? Are you like the sentinel who falls asleep 
at his post? If mother or father or teacher gives you any 
work to do, this week, do it in a wide-awake, careful fashion. 
Keep your eyes open to find out if you can help, or if you 
are needed to do something important. 


MEmMory WorkK 
A BALLAD OF TREES AND THE MASTER 


Into the woods my Master went, 

Clean forspent, forspent, 

Into the woods my Master came, 
Forspent with love and shame. 

But the olives they were not blind to him, 
The little gray leaves were kind to him; 
The thorn tree had a mind to him, 

When into the woods he came. 


Out of the woods my Master went 

And he was well content. 

Out of the woods my Master came, 
Content with death and shame. 

When death and shame would woo him last 
From under the trees they drew him last; 
*Twas on a tree they slew him—last, 

When out of the woods he came. 


—SIDNEY LANIER. 


140 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


A Srory to BE READ IN CONNECTION wiTtTH ‘T'HIs: LkEsson 


The story of how Lincoln pardoned the sentry who had 
fallen asleep at his post. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE ARREST OF JESUS 


Matthew 26:47-56; Mark 14:43-52; Luke 22 :47-53; John 
18 :1-11. 


Tur Memory VERSE 


“The Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.” 
—Matthew 26:45. 


THE Lesson StTorRY 


From the upper room the traitor Judas had gone to the 
high priests and other authorities, to carry out his wicked 
purpose of betraying Jesus. He had before this gone to 
them and made the plan, Mark 14:10, 11, but he was waiting 
for the opportunity. Judas knew that Jesus was accustomed 
to go to the Garden of Gethsemane. So, at this time, he 
brought a band of soldiers and servants, armed with swords 
and staves, and carrying lighted lanterns. As they passed 
through the streets of the city they were followed by a great 
crowd of passover pilgrims, eager and curious to see what 
was about to happen. 

Some people think that first the party went to the house 
where Jesus and the disciples had celebrated the passover 
supper. They think that this house belonged to the parents 
of Mark, who afterwards wrote the Gospel According to 
Mark. These same people say that Mark was in bed, but 
that he rushed out from his house to warn Jesus and the 
disciples. He did not find them in time; but they think that 
he was the young man who is described in Mark 14:51, 52, 
who is mentioned only in the Gospel of Mark. According 
to their view Mark tells the story because he was the person 
to whom it happened. 

It might have been supposed from the crowd of people 
who went out to arrest Jesus that he was the Leader of a 
great band, which was going to fight back. Judas had even 


FONITORGE UR CHE SCHOOL LVESSONS 141 


planned that he was to show the soldiers which of the party 
was Jesus by kissing him! 

They came, with the noise of clattering swords and. the 
glow of flashing lights, up the road into the quiet Garden. 
Judas led the party. The sleepy disciples were thoroughly 
awake now. Judas came forward and kissed Jesus, saying, 
eetiailskabbi., 

Jesus turned to him. His look must have been sad, as he 
spoke to his false disciple. ‘‘ Judas,” he said, “ betrayest 
thou the Son of man with a kiss?” “Do that for which 
thou art come.” 

The soldiers came forward and laid their hands upon 
Jesus. He did not resist, but his disciples were ready to 
fight. Peter, as usual, was the first to act. He seized a 
sword and cut off the ear of Malchus, the servant of the 
high priest. Jesus would not have any fighting. “ Put 
away your sword,” he said to Peter. “If it were right I 
could have twelve legions of angels to defend me. But it is 
God’s will that this should be done.” ‘Then he healed the 
ear of the servant—his last miracle of healing—and gave 
himself up to the authorities, asking that the disciples be 
allowed to go. 

But the disciples did not wait. When they saw that their 
Master was arrested they all fled. Peter and John, to be 
sure, followed the party at a distance, but even they for a 
time showed themselves cowards. But Jesus’ Church was 
founded on men who were true at heart, and though the dis- 
ciples seemed cowards then, it was not many months later 
that every one of the Eleven was showing himself as brave 
as a lion, for Jesus’ sake. 


PUTTING THE L&sson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. Probably Judas was first tempted to be disloyal to 
Christ in little things. He may have taken a few pennies 
from the bag which he carried as the treasurer of the band 
of disciples. We must all be careful in the little things. 
Then we need not be afraid of yielding to temptation in big 
things. 

2. Peter was brave when he drew his sword and cut off 
the ear of the servant of the high priest, and we all feel that 
we would have fought for Jesus, too, 1f we had been there. 


142 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


But Jesus knew that Peter’s act would not help him. We 
must be sure that we are doing what Jesus wants us to do, 
in the way that he wants us to do it—and then go ahead. 

3. Jesus need not have suffered as he suffered in the 
Garden. He need not have been crucified. He might have 
had twelve legions of angels to defend him. But he chose 
to do God’s will and to redeem the people of the world by 
the sacrifice of himself. We cannot redeem the world as he 
did, but we can give ourselves to telling others about him. 
Missionaries who give up their homes in pleasant civilized 
lands, in order to teach and preach among the heathen are 
following Jesus’ example. So are all those who give up their 
lives to his service. Many times during the Great War the 
ambulance drivers went to the assistance of wounded 
soldiers, under terrible gun fire. Were they less brave than 
the soldiers who fought with the enemy? Was Jesus less 
brave than Peter? Is it always the bravest boy who is most 
eager to fight, or is it sometimes the boy who wants to 
“show off” by his bluster, when he is really something of 
a coward? 


Tue Lesson TrRuTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of True Courage. Jesus showed greater 
courage in the Garden of Gethsemane than Peter did. 
Sometimes it takes greater courage not to poe than it takes 
to fight. Therefore: 

T will try to be a true hero—a boy or a girl of moral 
courage—in the fight for the right, even though I am only 
nine or ten or eleven years old. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
COURAGE FOR THE RIGHT 
Ephesians 6:10-20 


THE CiAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we ask you to help us to be truly 
brave as Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane. Help us 
to try to do what you want us to do, cheerfully and gladly, 
and to remember that in doing this we are following the 


FONTORSCHUL CH SCHOOL LESSONS 143 


example of Jesus, who loved us and all the people of the 
world so much that he died for us. For his sake we ask 
these things. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Joshua 1:9; Romans 10:10, 11; Mark 14:37, 38; Exodus 
Brice udges O11OasActs 0°29) Philippians 47213, 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


Onlesus, li ave Promised,” 
pelWarento Derbrave. ° 

wwotand Up, otand Up for/]eésus.” 
“Yield Not to Temptation.” 

“ True-Hearted, Whole-Hearted.” 


QuESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Where else than in the Garden of Gethsemane had 
Peter, James, and John fallen asleep at a crisis in Jesus’ life? 

2. What do you think of a sentry who falls asleep at his 
post? | 

3. Are you ever tempted to do anything that can be 
compared to this? 

4. Are you watching for opportunities to help Jesus’ 
work, and so to help him? 

5. Was it cowardly for Jesus to surrender to the soldiers 
in the Garden without a fight, or should he have fought back ? 

6. What was the name of the man whose ear Peter 
cut off? 

7. How can we put on “ the whole armor of God”? 


Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


Who Mark Was, and What Became of Him Later. 
Traitors of the Bible: Achan, Absalom. 
The Greatest Bible Traitor. 
True Courage. 
. Christ’s Prediction of the Betrayal, and How It Was 
Fulfilled. 
6. Howa Junior Can Betray Christ. 
7. Ways in Which a Junior Can Show True Courage. 
8. The Armor of a Christian. 


Se a ae 


GHA Pil ROX Veh 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE TRIALS BEFORE ANNAS AND CAIAPHAS 


Matthew 26:57-68; Mark 14:53-65; Luke 22:54, 63-71; 
John 18:12-14, 19-24. 


THE MEMory VERSE 
“ He was despised, and rejected of men.’—Isaiah 53:3. 


Tue LESSON STORY 


Palestine at the time of Jesus was under the control of 
the Roman Government. At the time when he was born, 
you remember, it had been ruled by kings, whom the em- 
peror of Rome appointed. Usually these kings had made 
some claim of being Jews. But there had been so much 
trouble in Palestine, that the power of the king had been 
decreased. At the time of our lesson, though Herod was the 
ruler of the province of Galilee, there was a Roman gov- 
ernor in Jerusalem—Pontius Pilate. 

Though the Romans ruled very strictly in some things, 
they allowed the Jews freedom in religious matters. They 
allowed the sanhedrin to judge in questions of religion. 
They allowed the Jews to have a high priest, who had a 
great deal of power. 

The sanhedrin, or court of seventy elders, had been estab- 
lished some time after the Exile. It was made up of 
priests, elders, and scribes, and its chief officer was the high 
priest. Most of its members in the time of Jesus were 
Sadducees. It could give judgment that a criminal should 
be put to death, but it could not pronounce the death 
sentence. 

The regular method of proceeding in a trial is described 
as follows: “The members of the sanhedrin sat in a semi- 
circle. A quorum of twenty-three was required. In front 
of them stood the two clerks of the court; the one on the 


144 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 145 


right hand recorded the votes for acquittal, and the one on 
the left recorded the votes for condemnation. The ‘ dis- 
ciples of the wise’ (the pupils of the scribes) occupied three 
additional rows in front. It was required to hear the 
reasons for acquittal first . . . and afterwards the reasons 
for condemnation. . . . Acquittal could be pronounced on 
the day of the trial, but condemnation not till the following 
day. . . . Each member stood up to give his vote, and vot- 
ing began with the youngest member.” 

The high priest, who is a very important character in the 
trial of Jesus, and who was even more guilty than the mem- 
bers of the sanhedrin, held an office that had been important 
all through the history of the Jews. They were always men 
of great power and influence. During the later part of 
Jewish history, the office had become political, rather than 
religious, and at the time of Jesus’ trial the high priest was 
Joseph Caiaphas. Caiaphas had been made high priest by 
the Romans in a. p. 18, and he held the office for eighteen 
years. He was a remarkable man in many ways, but he 
hated Jesus with great violence. His father-in-law Annas 
had been high priest some time before this, and was still the 
real head of the sanhedrin, though Caiaphas was called so. 

It was about midnight when Jesus was led through the 
silent streets of Jerusalem, first to Annas, John 18:13, where 
there was an informal examination, and then to Caiaphas. 
A meeting of the sanhedrin had been hurriedly called in the 
house of Caiaphas, though it was illegal to have such a meet- 
ing at night. There must have been present at least twenty- 
three members. Jesus was brought before the court. He 
stood before them in majestic silence, waiting for what he 
knew was coming. 

The members of the council had tried to find witnesses 
against Jesus, but they could not find any whose testimony 
was strong enough. At last they found two men who testi- 
fied that he had said,.“ I am able to destroy the temple of 
God, and to build it in three days.” Jesus had said some- 
thing of this sort. You will find it in John 2:19-21, but he 
had referred to the temple of his body, which was destroyed 
and raised in the resurrection on the third day. 

Jesus still stood silent. The high priest spoke: “ An- 
swerest thou nothing? what is it that these witness against 


146 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


thee?” But Jesus did not speak even then. It was only 
when the high priest asked, “ Art thou the Christ, the Son 
of the Blessed?” that Jesus answered, saying, “I am.” 
He could not deny it—he would not deny it. He was the 
Messiah whom the Jews had so long expected, and instead 
of receiving him as they should have done, they had re- 
ceived him with mockery and scorn. “ And the high priest 
rent his clothes, and saith, What further need have we of 
witnesses? Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? 
And they all condemned him to be worthy of death. And 
some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet 
him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the officers re- 
ceived him with blows of their hands.” 

The entire trial of Jesus before Caiaphas and the sanhedrin 
was a mockery. They knew in advance what they wanted 
to do. There was nothing fair about it, even according to 
their own laws. There was no real testimony against him, 
in the first place, but in addition to this there were legal 
points which were disregarded. The trial was at night, 
which was contrary to law; the reasons for acquittal were 
not given first; the condemnation was pronounced imme- 
diately instead of on the next day, as the law required. The 
youngest member did not cast his vote first. In every way 
the Jewish leaders were unfair in Jesus’ trial. 

Read the following plan of what happened to Jesus that 
night, between midnight in the Garden of Gethseinane, and 
morning. Remember that this trial was before daybreak, 
“straightway in the morning,’ Mark 15:1, they took him 
before Pilate, the Roman governor. 

“1. The Lord and his apostles leave the upper room an 
hour before midnight, and go to Gethsemane. 

“2. The arrest in Gethsemane about midnight or a little 
aster 

“3. He is taken to Annas, but no examination before 
him is recorded. : 

“4. He is soon taken to Caiaphas, and here is a brief 
preliminary examination, mentioned only by John, and after 
it followed the abuse by one of the high priest’s officers. 

‘5. The sanhedrin assembles at one or two in the morn- 
ing in the palace of Caiaphas, and the Lord is formally tried 


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JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 147 


and condemned, and then abused by the members (Matthew 
26:07). 

“6. The sanhedrin, after a temporary adjournment, re- 
assembles at break of day to determine how to bring Jesus 
before Pilate; and at this time his confession is repeated, but 
without a formal trial. This hearing is recorded only in 
Luke (ch. 22:66). 

“7, The Lord is taken to Pilate in the early morning.” 


HANDWORK 


Make on the blackboard a drawing of the semicircle in 
which the members of the sanhedrin sat. Put dots to indi- 
cate the high priest and the men who acted as judges. Jesus 
stood in the center of the semicircle. 


Map Work 


Continue your work on your map of Jerusalem and the 
surrounding places. 


NotTEeEBooK WorK 


Enter this trial of Jesus in your notebook. ‘There are 
three parts: the interview with Annas; the interview with 
Caiaphas ; the questioning before the sanhedrin. 


Mrmory WorkK 


There are three very important confessions of Christ’s 
Messiahship. Learn them. Peter’s great confession: 
“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Matthew 
16:16; Christ’s own words to Caiaphas, when he asked, 
“Tall us whether thou art the Christ, the Son of God,” and 
Jesus answered, “Thou hast said,” Matthew 26:63, 64; and 
the confession of Thomas after the resurrection, “ My Lord 
and my God,” John 20:28. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


If you have an opportunity this week to stand up for 
Jesus, and to express your loyalty to him, and to confess 
your belief that he is the Christ, the Son of God, be sure 
to do so. 


148 JUNIOR CHURCH S CHOOSER SSONS 


SUNDAY SESSION 
ISAM ee, TONE INI AG 


Matthew 26:69-75 ; Mark 14:66-72; Luke 22 :54-62; John 
18 :25-27. 


Tur Memory VERSE 


“Tet him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” 
We OOmnttanse. Wah 


Tue Lesson STORY 


As Jesus was led a prisoner from the Garden of Geth- 
semane, through the streets of Jerusalem, there were two 
of the disciples who followed the group of soldiers at a 
distance. One of these was Peter; the other is not named, 
but 1s generally supposed to have been John, because this 
story is told in the Gospel of John, and John never speaks 
of himself by name. Peter and John were afraid to stay 
close by Jesus, but they did not quite desert him. When 
they came to the high priest’s palace, John, who knew the 
high priest, obtained admission to the house for himself and 
tor Peter: 

Do you remember how houses are usually built in Pales- 
tine? There is a central court, you know, open to the sky, 
with rooms opening out from it. In the central court at 
this time there was a fire. Peter sat at the fire, warming 
himself. Do you remember how Peter had declared at the 
Last Supper that, no matter who else might desert Jesus, he 
would be true? Do you remember how he had been brave 
enough, in the Garden of Gethsemane, to cut off the ear of 
Malchus, the servant of the high priest? Peter surely had 
believed that he would never desert Jesus. He believed that 
he would always be brave and true. 

But at the very first test he failed. One of the maid- 
servants spoke to him. ‘“ Thou also wast with Jesus the 
Galilean,” she said. She recognized this from his language, 
for the language of Galilee was slightly different from that 
of Jerusalem, just as the language spoken in the southern 
part of the United States is a little different from that 
spoken in the North, though we can all understand one 
another. 


(eo rRechHUkCHESCHOORRUESSONS 149 

“T don’t know what you are talking about,” said Peter 
roughly. He was afraid to acknowledge that he knew Jesus. 
Just as he spoke a cock crowed. 

A little later another maid spoke. ‘This man also was 
with Jesus of Nazareth,” she said. 

“T don’t know the man,” said Peter still more roughly. 
He even used an oath. But the people around insisted. 
"You must be from Galilee’ Your language tells that.” 
One of the servants, a kinsman or relative of Malchus, 
whose ear Peter had cut off, even asked, “ Did I not see 
thee in the Garden with him?” Then Peter cursed and 
swore. ‘I don’t know the man at all,” he insisted. ‘I do 
not know him.” “And straightway,” the Bible tells us, 
“the cock crew.” And Jesus turned and looked at Peter, 
a sorrowful, grieved look. ‘Then Peter remembered what 
Jesus had said at the Supper, when he had thought and had 
boasted that he would always be true—* Before the cock 
crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” Peter was overwhelmed 
with sorrow. He knew now how sinful he had been. He 
had denied Jesus. He went out of the room, out of the 
priest’s palace, and “ wept bitterly.” 

But Peter’s sorrow and repentance showed themselves in 
other ways than in weeping. He became one of the bravest 
and boldest of Jesus’ followers. Never after that did he 
show himself a coward. He was always a hero for the 
right. When we read of the Peter of The Acts, we know 
that he was never again afraid to stand up for Jesus and 
acknowledge that he was Jesus’ follower. 


PuTtinc THE Lesson INtTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. Do you suppose that this was the first time that Peter 
had cursed and sworn? He had been a rough fisherman, 
remember, before he became a follower of Jesus. Probably 
he had sworn and used oaths in his early days. And now, 
at this great time in his life, he cursed and swore again, and 
even nineteen hundred years later we know that Peter 
“cursed and swore.” When boys and girls use slang or 
even worse words, every day, they will some day use them 
when they forget themselves, and are sorry for it. Always 
use good words, and then you will never use bad words at 
the wrong time. 


150 JUNIOR |\CHURCHYSCHOOTALESSONS 


2. Peter boasted that he would always be true to Jesus, 
but he was untrue to him at the very first test. Do you ever 
do anything like that? You really like Elizabeth; she is 
your friend. Yet when a number of girls are together, and 
one of them says, “ Elizabeth is stupid in arithmetic,” and 
another says, “ She has an ugly mouth,” do you speak up 
and say: “ Elizabeth’s my friend. She has a lovely dis- 
position;”’ or do you say, “I don’t like her new dress, 
either, do you?” Do you stick up for her, or does your 
friendship fail at the first test? 

3. And does your loyalty to Jesus fail as Peter’s did, or 
do you stand up for him always? Satan comes along and 
tempts you just when you think you are going to be true to 
him. So, be sure to look out when you think you are doing 
very wonderful things for him. “Let him that thinketh he 
standeth take heed lest he fall.” 

4. Jesus forgave Peter, and gave him another chance. 
If you have done wrong and are truly sorry, another chance 
will be given to you, too. 


Tur Lesson TRutH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Steadfastness. When we are true to 
Jesus and to our friends we will stand up for them always. 
heretore: 

We will never listen to those who talk against our religion, 
or Jesus Christ, who is its Head. We will always speak 
bravely and boldly for those things which we love and honor. 
We will act in the same way toward our friends, and toward 
those things which our parents and teachers have taught us 
are right. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
POYAT Ya Orr not 
II Timothy 2:11-13 


THE CLASS PRAYER 


O Jesus, we want to be true to thee always, in thought, 
word, and deed. Let us never deny thee as Peter did; let 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 151 


us always be brave enough to stand up for thee and for 
everything that is true and right. We ask this in thy name. 
Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


Ephesians 6:10; Proverbs 11:2; 16:18; I Corinthians 
16:13; Matthew 10:33; 26:41. 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


ectand Up, stand: Up tor Jesus.” 
ceinethe Liou ol ltials 


QUESTIONS FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What happened to Judas after the betrayal ? 

2. Why was Judas’ betrayal of Christ worse than Peter’s 
denial ? 

3. What was the difference between the way in which 
Judas showed his sorrow and the way in which Peter 
showed his sorrow? What lesson has this for us? 

4. Where did Jesus say that Peter would deny him? 

5. In what way can a Junior betray Christ? 

6. In what way can a Junior deny Christ? 


Topics For DiscussION OR REPORTS 


1. The High Priests of the Jews. 

2. Caiaphas and Annas. 

3. Judas and Peter. 

4. The Unfairness of the Way Jesus Was Tried by the 
Jews. 

5. Am I Ever Unfair in My Judgment of Christ? 

6. Am I Ever Unfair in What I Say About Christ’s Fol- 


lowers? 
7. Am I Always Loyal to Christ? 


CHAPEL Ray LIT 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE TRIAD S' BEBORE PIVAT EVA NIDSH Baie 


Matthew 27:1, 2, 11; 31; Mark 15: 1-20; Luke 23 ezom 
LONig So orton as 


Tut Memory VERSE 
“T find no crime in him.’”—John 18:38. 


Tuer Lesson STorRY 


Early in the morning after Jesus had been tried illegally 
before the sanhedrin, a more formal meeting was called and 
hurried through with. Then the soldiers bound Jesus and 
took him to the house of Pontius Pilate, the Roman pro- 
curator, or governor. 

Pontius Pilate was a very wicked man. He was a Roman 
who had been appointed governor of Judea in A. pb. 26. He 
had begun his rule by doing many things which the Jews 
hated. He had used some of the sacred money of the Jews 
in bringing water to Jerusalem, and there had been a riot 
in which many people were killed. He had tried to put up 
some gilt shields dedicated to the Roman emperor, Tiberius, 
in the palace of Herod in Jerusalem, and this, too, had made 
the people angry. In every way Pilate sought his own ad- 
vantage, but he was very unpopular, and at this time he was 
afraid that the Roman emperor would take away his office. 

The Roman procurators as a rule lived in Czsarea, but at 
this time Pilate was probably living in the magnificent palace 
which Herod the Great had built for himself—or at least he 
was staying there during the passover feast. ‘The Roman 
governor always liked to know what was going on. Herod’s 
palace was a wonderful building whose marble was more 
valuable than that of the Temple itself. It had beautiful 
courts with groves of trees and many apartments, two of 
which were called “the Czsareum” and the “ Aggripeum.” 


152 


FONLORDGHURCHeSCHOOLAEESSONS 153 


Usually Roman judges did not open their courts before 
sunrise, and judgments were not given until after 6.00 a.m. 
The judge must always sit in the judgment seat, and this 
must be placed on a pavement. When Roman judges trav- 
eled, they carried with them the seat and pieces of marble 
ready fitted, so that they might be laid down at any place, 
and the judgment seat put upon them. 

The Bible tells us that Jesus was led to Pilate in the 
Pretorium. This was probably the palace of Herod where 
Pilate was living. It must have been before seven o’clock in 
the morning. 

Pilate had been told that the Jews were bringing Jesus to 
him. Because it was passover time, the Jews could not go 
into the Pretorium, for this would have broken their law. 
So Pilate went out to meet them. “ Of what do you accuse 
this man?” he asked. 

The members of the sanhedrin did not answer directly. 
They knew that Pilate would not care for their real accusa- 
tion of Jesus. He did not trouble about religious matters. 
“Tf this man were not an evildoer,” they said, “ we should 
not have delivered him up unto thee.” 

“Take him, and judge him yourselves,” said Pilate. The 
Jews knew that they had no power to do this. They wanted 
to have Jesus put to death, and only the Romans could give 
this command. So they accused Jesus of being a rebel to 
the Roman Government and of saying that he was king. 
This was a very serious charge. 

Pilate took Jesus into the Pretorium. He asked him, 
“ Art thou the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered him, 
“Tam,” and told him about his Kingdom and what it really 
was. John 18:33-38. Pilate saw at once that Jesus was 
not a rebel as the sanhedrin had accused him of being. He 
took Jesus again out of the Pretorium to the men outside 
and declared to the accusers that he found no fault in Christ. 

The Jews were angry. They made all sorts of accusations. 
They declared that Jesus was making trouble through all 
Judea and Galilee. The mention of Galilee gave a new idea 
to Pilate. He knew that Herod, the ruler of Galilee, was in 
Jerusalem for the passover. He would turn over the trial 
to him. So Jesus was taken before Herod. 

This Herod was the same Herod who had beheaded John 


154 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


the Baptist. He was glad of the chance to hear what Jesus 
had to say. But before him Jesus said nothing at all. 
Herod then handed him over to the soldiers who put upon 
him a gorgeous robe and sent him back to Pilate. 

Once more Pilate was to decide what should be done with 
Jesus. It was the custom for the Roman governors to re- 
lease a prisoner at the.feast. They did this to make them- 
selves popular. Pilate thought that if he suggested to the 
people that he release Jesus, they would be pleased. But 
they were influenced by the high priests and the scribes. 
When Pilate asked, “ Whom will ye that I release unto you? 
Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” they demanded 
the release of Barabbas, a noted murderer, rather than that 
of the innocent Christ! 

In the meantime Pilate’s wife, whose name was Claudia 
Procula, sent to her husband. “I have had a terrible dream 
about this Man,” she said. ‘‘ Have nothing to do with his 
death.” Once more Pilate tried to persuade the people that 
Jesus should be released instead of Barabbas. But they 
insisted. Under the influence of the high priests and the 
members of the sanhedrin they grew more and more violent. 
Finally Pilate asked, “ What then shall I do unto Jesus who 
is called Christ?’’. ‘And’ the people) urged) ona@ibymtaen 
leaders, cried out, mad with rage and hatred: “ Crucify him! 
Crucify him!” 

Pilate at last yielded. He ordered that Jesus should be 
taken away to be scourged, or beaten. Once more Jesus 
endured awful suffering for our sakes. 

After the Roman soldiers had beaten Jesus, they dressed 
him in a scarlet robe. ‘They plaited a crown of thorns, and 
put it on his head. ‘They put a reed in his right hand as if 
it had been a scepter. They knelt down before him, crying, 
“ Hail, King of the Jews!” 

Pilate made one more effort after this to free Jesus. Once 
more he was led before the people, bloody from the scourg- 
ing, and wearing the scarlet robe and the crown of thorns. 
Once more Pilate pointed to Jesus, with the words, “ Be- 
hold, the man.” But the high priests were too cunning and 
too strong for him. “If you release Jesus,” they said, “ you 
are no friend of Caesar. We shall take up the matter with 
Caesar.” 


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CHRIST BEFORE PILATE 


DUNO R@CHUR CH SCHOOL LESSONS 155 


Pilate was afraid. He dared do no more. He knew that 
he was not strong enough with the government at Rome to 
hold his position 1f he became still more unpopular with the 
people. So, for the sake of his political office, he went 
against his conscience. He called for a basin and water. 
He washed his hands to show that he was innocent of the 
death of Jesus—as if that would clear him of the crime— 
and pronounced the sentence. Jesus was led away to be 
crucified. 

Pilate’s rule in Palestine did not last very long after this, 
even though he tried in many ways to make ‘he Jews his 
friends. He was ordered to Rome to report to the emperor 
about his conduct in A. p. 37, and was then banished to the 
south of France, where he committed suicide. It is said 
that he could never get out of his mind the innocent Man 
whom he had condemned to death, and he is always remem- 
bered by Christian people with dislike when they say the 
words of the Creed, “ suffered under Pontius Pilate.” 


HANDWORK 


Look at the picture of Christ Before Pilate which has 
been painted by the artist Munkacsy, or that by William 
Hole. ‘Then model on your sand table a judgment chair, or 
seat. Make from paper a pavement to put under it. Color 
this to imitate marble. 


NoteBook WorkK 


Enter the trials of Jesus which you have in this lesson in 
your notebook. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Pilate ordered Jesus to be crucified, even though he knew 
that it was wrong to do this. He went contrary to what his 
conscience told him was right. If conscience speaks to you 
this week, remember Pilate and his sin, and do what the 
little voice inside you says is right. 


156 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


SUNDAY SESSION 
ON THE WAY TO THe CROSS 
Matthew 27 :32; Mark 15:20, 21; Luke 23 :26; John 19:17, 


Tort Memory VERSE 


“He went out, bearing the cross for himself.”—John 
NAR 


THE Lesson STORY 


The trials of Jesus were finished. He was condemned to 
be crucified—to die as the most wicked criminals were con- 
demned to die under the government of the Romans. 

Crucifixion was not a Jewish form of punishment. When 
it was necessary according to Jewish law to punish a criminal 
by death, some other method than crucifixion was used. 
But the Romans were a cruel race. They crucified men who 
had committed even slight crimes. 

The Roman soldiers took from Jesus the scarlet robe in 
which Herod’s soldiers had dressed him. They put on him 
again his own garments. Then they led him out of the city 
to crucify him, for the place of punishment was outside the 
walls. Usually there were four soldiers who went with 
each criminal as a guard, and one of these carried a board, 
or placard, on which the crimes of the prisoner were writ- 
ten. This placard was afterwards put on the cross. Prob- 
ably this was done in the case of Jesus for we know that 
Pilate wrote an inscription for the cross, which was after- 
wards put up—an inscription in three languages—in Hebrew 
and in Latin and in Greek. Pilate wrote as the charge 
against Jesus, “ Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” 
The chief priests wanted Pilate to change this to “ He said, 
IT am King of the Jews,” but Pilate refused to do this. 

At the same time that Jesus was led out to be crucified, 
there were taken to the place of crucifixion two thieves, 
We can picture the scene. It was a holiday, a sacred day of 
the Jews. Through the streets went a little band, twelve 
Roman soldiers in their gleaming armor, with spears and 
helmets shining in the sun, and three prisoners, each carry- 
ing his own cross, as the custom was. Two of the prisoners 
had cruel, brutal faces, but one of them had the most beauti- 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS (37 


ful expression—the saddest, the most wonderful that anyone 
has ever seen. 

As they passed through the streets more and more people 
followed the band. Urged on by the men who hated Jesus 
they called out in mockery and scorn. Some of the women 
were moved by pity at the sight. 

Jesus had been through terrible suffering and agony. 
Remember that it was not yet nine o'clock in the morning. 
Since the night before he had gone through the suffering in 
the Garden of Gethsemane, his arrest, the desertion of the 
disciples, the trials, the scourging. It was too much for his 
human body. He fell under the weight of the cross. He 
could not carry it farther. 

In such a case it was the custom for some one else to be 
made to carry the cross of the prisoner. So the Roman 
soldiers compelled a man named Simon of Cyrene to carry 
Jesus’ cross till they came to the place of crucifixion, 
Golgotha, or Calvary, the place of a skull. 

There are several places which may have been the place 
of punishment. The word means “ skull-shaped,” and there 
is a Skull-shaped mound outside the walls of Jerusalem which 
is supposed to have been the place of the crucifixion. ‘The 
hill has a rounded summit, and there are two hollow cave 
entrances beneath which make it look very much like a skull. 
Near it was the great highway to the north and in the neigh- 
borhood are gardens and rock-hewn tombs. Probably it was 
here that Jesus was crucified, dying in this way to show his 
love for the people of the world. 


Purtinc THE LEsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. Pilate had to answer the question, “‘ What shall we do 
with Jesus?” ‘That is a question which all of us to-day have 
to answer. What are you Juniors going to do with Jesus? 
Are you going to make him your King, or are you going to 
neglect him, and lose him out of your lives? 

2. Pilate was afraid of the people’s opinion. He had 
done wrong and he knew it, and this made him a coward. 
“Conscience doth make cowards of us all.” If our con- 
sciences tell us that we are right we can be as brave as lions. 

3. Jesus knew that he was right. His conscience was 


158 JUNIOR CHURCH  SCHOOEL LESSONS 


clear. So he was brave and ready for whatever God sent to 
him, even for the cross. 

4. The people in the crowd were influenced by those who 
hated Jesus to mock him and to cry out against him. Do you 
sometimes “go with the crowd,” even though you don’t 
know much about the question that is being discussed? ‘Try 
to understand before you “take sides,’ and then do what. 
you think is right. 


Tue Lesson TRutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 
The Law of Listening to the Little Voice Within. One 
of the ways in which God speaks to the people of the 
world is through the voice of conscience—the little voice 
inside us. Therefore: 
I will listen to what the voice within me says is right, for 
it is one way in which God speaks to me. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
WHAT SHALL WE DO WITH JESUS? 
Philippians 2 :9-11 
THE CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we thank thee that thou didst send 
thy Son to the world to save us, his children, from our sins. 
We know how much he endured and suffered for our sakes, 
and we want to be true followers of Jesus, who endured the 
cross and despised the shame for our sakes. In Jesus’ 
name. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Matthew 10:38; Galatians 6:14; Colossians 1:20; He- 
brews 12:2; Acts 2:22-24; I John 4:13-16. 


Hymns For Usk IN THE MEETING 


“What Shall We Do with Jesus?” 
“ There Is a Green Hill Far Away.” 


JUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOL’ LESSONS Poe 


“O Sacred Head, Now Wounded.” 
“ Beneath the Cross of Jesus.” 
“In the Cross of Christ I Glory.” 
“Thy Life Was Given for Me.” 

“ Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross.” 
“In His Own Raiment Clad.” 


QUESTIONS FoR UsE IN THE MEETING 


1, Who was Simon of Cyrene? 

2. Why did Jesus fall under the weight of the cross? 

3. Do you think that any of the disciples were in the 
crowd that followed Jesus? 

4. Where was Peter? What do you thing became of him 
after he left the hall of the high priest’s house? 

5. Where was John? 


Topics FoR Discussion OR REPORTS 


Legends About the Cross. 

Simon of Cyrene and His Sons. 
What the Cross Means To-Day. 
The Inscriptions for the Cross. 
The Different Forms of the Cross. 
Roman Soldiers. 

What Shall I Do with Jesus? 


BLEEP Sas nee AS Cen 


GEIUAP TE Rae 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
JES UStONGI HE GROSS 


Matthew 27 :33-56; Mark 14 :22-41; Luke 23 :27-49; John 
19 17-37 


Tuer MEMorY VERSE 


“Father, forgive them; for they know not what they 
do.” —Luke 23 :34. 


Tue Lesson STORY 


It was less than a week since the triumphal entry into 
Jerusalem—only about twelve hours since Jesus had eaten 
the Last Supper in the upper room with his disciples. And 
now he was hanging on the cross, dying, in order to bring 
salvation to the people of the world! 

The trials before Pilate and Herod had been carried 
through so quickly that it was only about nine o’clock in the 
morning when the crucifixion took place. Mark 15:25. 
(Remember that twelve o'clock in the morning was the sixth 
hour. Look at your clock plan, given in Chapter VII.) As 
the custom was, Jesus had been nailed to the eross as it lay 
on the ground. Even in this moment of agony he spoke 
words of forgiveness for his enemies: “ Father, forgive 
them; for they know not what they do.” The cross was set 
up between two other crosses, on which were hanging the two 
thieves. Around them were the soldiers in charge of a 
centurion, or commander. They had taken Jesus’ garments 
and divided them into piles, as was usual; the seamless outer 
robe which he had worn could not be divided, so they cast 
lots for it. This, too, was the usual custom. Over the cross 
was placed the inscription, “ Jesus of Nazareth, the King of 
the Jews.” It was written in Latin and in Greek and in 
Aramaic, or Hebrew. Pilate had intended this inscription 
as a mockery, but how true it was! 


160 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 161 


It was the custom for the charitable women of Jerusalem 
to prepare a stupefying drink of wine and myrrh, and to 
offer this to the criminal who was about to be crucified. 
This would deaden the pain, and was really a kind act. But 
Jesus refused this drink because he wanted to keep his 
senses clear. 

Besides the soldiers there was around the crosses a mock- 
ing, jeering mob, urged on by members of the sanhedrin to 
call out all sorts of taunts. ‘‘ He saved others, but he cannot 
save himself!” “He is the King of Israel; let him now 
come down from the cross, and we will believe on him!” 
they shouted. There were, too, a few friends close by the 
cross: the disciple John; Mary, the mother of Jesus ; Salome, 
the mother of James and John; Mary, the mother of Joses 
and the other James; and Mary Magdalene are named. Per- 
haps Peter and the other disciples were in the crowd, but we 
do not know, for the Bible does not say that they were there. 

The two thieves, one on each side of Jesus, at first joined 
in the taunts and the mockery. Then one of them seems to 
have felt a different spirit—in some way he knew that Jesus 
was the Christ. He spoke to his companion in rebuke. 
“Dost thou not even fear God?” he asked. “ We are pun- 
ished justly for our crimes, but this man has done nothing 
that makes him worthy of death.” Then he turned to Jesus 
and said, “ Jesus, remember me when thou comest in thy 
kingdom.” Jesus heard, as he always hears requests that 
come truly from the heart, and he answered, “ Verily I say 
unto thee, T’o-day shalt thou be with me in Paradise.” 

In the meantime the friends of Jesus had come nearer the 
cross. When Jesus saw them there, even in the midst of his 
pain and suffering he noticed his mother. John, too, was 
close by, and he spoke to them. “ Woman, behold, thy son!” 
he said to Mary, and to John he said, “ Behold, thy mother.” 
Even on the cross, Jesus thought of Mary, and made pro- 
vision for her. 

At noon, the sixth hour, a terrible darkness came over the 
land. ‘This lasted until three o’clock, the ninth hour. It was 
toward the end of this time of darkness, when everyone 
must have been awed and quieted by the awful blackness, 
coming in the middle of the day, that Jesus spoke for the 
fourth time—‘ My God, my God,” he said, “ why hast theu 


162 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


forsaken me?” ‘These words in Aramaic, or Hebrew, are 
“Fili, Eli, lama sabachthani,” and those who stood around 
thought that he was calling upon Elijah, the great prophet 
of the Jews. He spoke again. “I thirst.” One of the by- 
standers—perhaps it was one of the Roman soldiers—was 
sorry for him. He took a sponge, and soaked it in vinegar, 
and then raised it on a reed to Jesus. ‘The rest tried to stop 
this man. ‘“ Let him be,” they said. “ Let'us see whether 
Elijah will save him.” 

For the sixth time Jesus cried out. “ It is finished.” Then 
came his last words, “ Father, into thy hands I commend my 
spirit.” With these words he died. 

At the moment of his death there was a great earthquake, 
the veil of the Temple was torn from top to bottom, and 
there were other miracles. God showed to all the world that 
this was his Son who was dying there upon the cross. The 
Jews denied it, but even the Roman centurion, cruel man 
that he must have been, saw that there was something won- 
derful, something divine in Jesus, for the words that he 
spoke as Jesus died show this. ‘“ Truly,” he said, “this was 
the Son of God.” 


NoteBook WorkK 


Enter in your notebooks under the heading “ Jesus‘on the 
Cross,” the seven words which Jesus spoke from the cross. 
The order which is given in Andrews’ “ Life of Our Lord,” 
is as follows: 


Before the Darkness. 


1. “Father, forgive them; for they know not what 
they do.”—Luke 23 :34. | 


2. “Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with 
me in Paradise.”—Luke 23:43. 


3. “Woman, behold, thy son! 2°.) [= Beholdmaiims 
mother! ”—John 19:26, 27. 


During the Darkness—from twelve o’clock until three. 


4. “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” 
—Matthew 27 :46. 


— 


INVdISNVUI—KUVATVO OL AVM HHL NO 








, 
i 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 163 


After the Darkness. 
9. “I thirst.’—John 19:28. 
6. “It is finished.”—John 19:30. 


7. “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.”— 
Luke 23:46. 


EXPpRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


To show the love that you feel for Jesus because he has 
done so much for you, do something for some one this 
week, that it is hard for you to do. Remember that when 
you do something for anyone in Jesus’ name and for his 
sake, he counts it as done for him. 


Mermory WorxK 


Learn the seven words from the cross. 


TA Book TO READ WITH. LHIS LESSON 


Read the part of Lew Wallace’s “ Ben Hur ” which tells 
of the crucifixion. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
JESUSsIN THES TOMB 


Matthew 27 :57-66; Mark 15 :42-47; Luke 23 :50-56; John 
19 :31-42. 


Tur Memory VERSE 
“ A bone of him shall not be broken.”—John 19:36, 


Tuer Lesson STORY 


Jesus’ death had come very quickly. Usually the person 
who was crucified lived for two or three days, suffering ter- 
ribly, before he died. But Jesus’ death came in a few hours. 

Because it was the time of the passover, and the Sabbath 
(Saturday) was at hand, the Jews went to Pilate and asked 


164 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


that the bodies of Jesus and the two thieves should not be 
allowed to remain on the crosses, and that their legs should 
be broken. This would kill them. Pilate yielded to this 
cruel request. He ordered his soldiers to do as the Jews 
asked. But when the men came to Jesus they found that he 
was already dead. To make sure of it, however, they 
pierced his side with a.spear, and blood and water flowed 
from the wound. 

In the meantime a secret friend of Jesus, Joseph of 
Arimathea, who was a member of the sanhedrin, went to 
Pilate and asked for the body of the Saviour. Pilate was 
surprised that Jesus was already dead. He asked the cen- 
turion about it, and was told that Jesus was dead. So he 
willingly gave to Joseph the permission to have the body. 

There was another man of prominence in Jerusalem who 
had been a secret friend of Jesus. This was Nicodemus, the 
Pharisee. Now he joined Joseph of Arimathza. Together 
they took the body of Jesus from the soldiers. They 
wrapped it in the cloths and spices which were used in 
burials in Palestine. Because it was so nearly the Sabbath 
they did the work hurriedly. ‘Then they took Jesus’ body 
toa new rock tomb in a garden, which belonged to Joseph. 
Here they laid the body tenderly, and rolled the stone against 
the door. The other friends of Jesus watched and helped 
as they could. The Sabbath had come, and they could do no 
more for their dead Friend. They seem to have forgotten 
all that he had said about rising again. They went away 
grieving and sad for their loss, and thinking that their hopes 
for the salvation of Israel were gone. 

In the meantime the Jews had been consulting with one 
another. In some way they knew that Jesus had said that 
he would rise again on the third day. They remembered 
this promise, even though Jesus’ friends did not. Perhaps 
Judas had told them. They remembered, too, about Lazarus, 
who had died and risen again. ‘They went to Pilate and told 
him that they were afraid that Jesus’ disciples would steal 
his body. They asked that a guard should be placed at the 
tomb, and that it be sealed. Pilate once more agreed to do 
as they asked. The tomb was sealed, with the seal of the 
Roman Government, and a guard of Roman soldiers was set 
to watch. It was made as sure as could be that the tomb 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 165 


was safe, that the body of Jesus could not be taken away 
by those who loved him. 


Puttine tHe Lksson Into THE LIFE oF THE CLASS 


1. The disciples really thought that Jesus was dead. 
They forgot entirely what he had told them about his rising 
again. Do we ever forget Jesus’ words to us, so that we 
act as if he had never died and risen again? 

Jesus died for our sakes on the cross. To show our love 
for him we should be willing to do something for him. 
We should do what he wants us to do, even though it 
seems to mean a sacrifice to ourselves. 

2. Joseph of Arimathza and Nicodemus were afraid to 
say that they loved Jesus when he was alive, but they spoke 
out when he was dead. It would have helped him more 
if they had stood up for him openly when he was alive. It 
is better to stand up for what we know is true late than not 
at all—* better late than never,” the old proverb says—but 
it is braver to stand for the right when the fight is hardest— 
not when it is over. 


Tuer Lesson [TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Courage. Jesus gave his life for us on the 
cross. He was brave and courageous. We want to show 
our love and thankfulness to him. Therefore: 

We will try to do what he wants us to do, even though it 
takes bravery and courage. We will try to be brave and to 
take his part when it will do the most good, and not to hesi- 
tate to speak out for him, even when it is hard. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
HOW WE THINK OF JESUS 
I John 5:2-6 
THE CLAss PRAYER 


O Jesus, we love thee and thank thee for thy bravery and 
love for us in euduring the suffering on the cross. Help us 


166 JUNIOR VCHURCHAS CHOOM LE SStUNe 


to show our love for thee in doing those things which thou 
wouldst have us to do. Help us to be brave and strong for 
what is right. For thy name’s sake. Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 
WCorinthians 152l7 Acts 16:312 33377-2900: 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


“My Faith Looks Up to Thee.” 
The hymns mentioned in connection with Chapter XVIII. 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What happened immediately after Jesus died on the 
cross? 

2. Who was the braver—Peter or Joseph of Arimathza? 

3. What do we mean by “ Good Friday ”? 

4. In many churches there is a service of prayer from 
twelve o’clock until three. Why is this? 

5. What else can you find out in your Bibles about 
Nicodemus ? 

6. How can I show my love for Jesus? 


Topics For Discussion OR REPORTS 


Three Gardens of the Bible. 

The Rock Tomb of the Garden. 

Pilate’s Thoughts After the Crucifixion. 
Peter’s Thoughts After the Crucifixion. 
Caiaphas’ Thoughts After the Crucifixion. 
“Ben-Hur.” The Account of the Crucifixion. 
How Should We Think of Jesus? 


PLE SRS Geicek Nee 


THREE GARDENS OF THE BIBLE , 
THE GARDEN OF EDEN 


“And Jehovah God planted a garden eastward, in Eden; 
and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out 
of the ground made Jehovah God to grow every tree that is 
pleasant to the sight, and good for food.”—Genesis 2:8, 9. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 167 


THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE 


“Jesus .. . went forth with his disciples over the brook 
Kidron, where was a garden, into which he entered.”— 
John 18:1. 

“And he went forward a little, and fell on the ground, 
and prayed.”—Mark 14:35. 


THE GARDEN OF THE RESURRECTION 


“Now in the place where he was crucified there was a 
garden; and in the garden a new tomb wherein was never 
man yet laid.”—John 19:41. 

“ Be not amazed: ye seek Jesus, . . . who hath been cruci- 
fied: he is risen; ... behold, the place where they laid 
him! ”’—Mark 16:6. 


CHAPTER XX 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS 


Matthew 28:1-15; Mark 16:1-10; Luke 24:1-12; John 
20 :11-18 


Tur Memory VERSE 
“ He is not here; for he is risen.” —Matthew 28:6. 


THE Lesson STORY 


The disciples and the other friends of Jesus spent the 
Sabbath after the crucifixion quietly, mourning for their 
dead Friend, Luke 23:56. They seem to have forgotten 
completely what he had told them about his death and 
resurrection. Even Peter and James and John, who had 
been with him on the Mount of Transfiguration and in the 
Garden of Gethsemane, had forgotten his words. 

As soon as the Sabbath was past some of the women of 
the party procured spices and started to the tomb in the 
garden of Joseph of Arimathza. They knew that the body 
of Jesus had been prepared hastily for burial after the cruci- 
fixion on Friday, for the Sabbath was too near to make 
possible all the preparations which were necessary. ‘Their 
love for Jesus, too, made them want to do everything in the 
best way that they could. The women in the party were 
Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James the less 
and Joses, and Salome, the mother of John and James. 

As they went along the road they talked about their dead 
Friend. They wondered who would roll away the heavy 
stone from the door of thé tomb, for they knew that they 
themselves were not strong enough to do this. They did 
not know about the guard of Roman soldiers, and it was 
just as well, for the soldiers were no longer there. Some- 
thing strange had happened to them. They hurried to the 
rulers and high priests, and told a strange story. ‘They said 


168 


PON TORCH URGH SCHOOL LESSONS 169 


that while they were watching the tomb there had been an 
earthquake, and an angel had rolled away the stone from the 
door of the tomb, and sat upon it—an angel whose appear- 
ance was as lightning, dressed in garments as white as snow. 
The watchers had been overcome with fear. ‘They were so 
frightened that they had fallen to the ground as if they were 
dead. ‘Then, as soon as they could get courage, they had 
gotten up and had come to the city to tell what had happened. 

The chief priests were troubled. They did not want 
people to know the story, so they gave the soldiers money to 
tell a lie—to say that they had fallen asleep while they were 
on guard, and that while they were asleep, Jesus’ disciples 
had stolen his body! And the soldiers did this. They 
allowed themselves to be paid to tell a lie—to be bribed not 
to tell the truth! 

So when the women came to the tomb, they found that 
the stone had already been pushed aside. Mary Magdalene 
did not wait to see what had happened. She turned and 
went back to the city to tell the disciples that the body of 
Jesus had been stolen, The other women went nearer the 
tomb. 

But instead of the Roman soldiers on guard, a young man 
—an angel—was there. He spoke to them and gave them 
dminessace. = be noteamazed) heysaid.. ; Ye seek Jesus. 
the Nazarene, who hath been crucified: he is risen; he is not 
here.” ‘Then he gave them a message for the disciples, 
especially mentioning Peter, who must have needed comfort 
very much. The women were surprised and frightened. 
They left the place as quickly as they could, and returned 
toward Jerusalem. On the way they met another party of 
women, coming on the same errand. The two parties re- 
turned to the tomb together. This time they found two 
angels there. ‘These angels told them again what they 
should do. ‘They all started again to Jerusalem. On the 
way Jesus met them. This was his first appearance after his 
resurrection. 

In the meantime Mary Magdalene had gone to the upper 
room where the disciples were and had given them her news. 
The disciples hurried to the garden. Peter and John were 
ahead. John reached the tomb first. He looked in. He 
saw the linen cloths that had wrapped the body of Jesus. 


170 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Then Simon Peter came up. They both saw the cloths— 
those which had been wrapped about Jesus’ body, and that 
which had been wrapped around his head lying in a different 
place by itself. They did not know what to think. They 
went back to the upper room and called together all the dis- 
ciples whom they could find, and told them the story of the 
empty tomb. . 

Mary Magdalene had not left the garden with Peter and 
John. She stayed in the garden, crying. Once more she 
looked into the tomb, to be sure that she and the others were 
not mistaken. The two angels were still there, one sitting 
at the place where Jesus’ head had been, the other at the 
place where the feet had been. 

“Why do you weep?” one of the angels asked. 

Mary does not seem even yet to have understood what 
had happened. “Iam crying because they have taken away 
my Master, and I do not know where they have laid him,” 
she said. ‘Then she turned and Jesus was standing behind 
her, though she did not know it. He spoke to her, saying 
almost the same words that the angels had said—‘‘ Why are 
you weeping?” 

She did not know his voice. She thought it was the 
gardener who spoke, so she asked again where the body of 
Jesus had been put. Jesus said one word—her name, 
“Mary.” As she heard it, she knew who it was that spoke. 
She knew that Jesus was alive again! Jesus told Mary to 
go back to the disciples and to tell them that she had seen 
him. And of course Mary obeyed. This was Jesus’ second 
appearance after his resurrection. Mary hurried back to 
Jerusalem and told what had happened to her. Just before 
this the other women had come in and told their story of 
seeing Jesus. Peter, too, had seen him. 

You can imagine how excited the disciples were. Their 
Friend had died and been buried, and now something strange 
had happened—they did not exactly know what. They shut 
the doors in the upper room, for they were afraid. 

Suddenly two more of Jesus’ followers came in. ‘They, 
too, had a strange story to tell. They had been going to 
Emmaus, a little village about seven or eight miles from 
Jerusalem and on the way a man had joined them. He had 
talked to them in a most wonderful way. They had been 


PUL RoGRURCH TS CHOOUILESSONS 171 


very much interested. When they reached Emmaus they 
had invited him to supper. He had accepted the invitation 
and had come in with them. And when he took the bread in 
his hands and broke it, they suddenly knew that this was 
Jesus! As soon as they recognized him he had disappeared, 
and they had hurried back to the city right away, to tell the 
disciples what had happened to them. 

Once more there was excitement among the men in that 
upper room. Jesus had appeared to the women, to Mary 
Magdalene, to Simon Peter, to the two on the road to 
Emmaus. ‘Then suddenly he himself was among them again, 
saying the words that he so often had used when he was 
alive, ‘“ Peace be unto you.” ‘They were frightened, and 
hardly knew what to do. He showed them his hands and 
his side, and asked for something to eat. He proved to them 
that he was really alive again. He talked to them gently, in 
the old, familiar way. Then he breathed upon them and 
gave them his blessing, saying, ‘ Receive ye the Holy Spirit.” 

Once more he was gone. But the disciples were no longer 
sorrowful. They knew that the Lord had really risen, that 
he really was alive again. 


HANDWORK 
Model on the sand table the rock tomb in the garden. 


NotTeEBooK WorK 


There were five appearances of Christ on the resurrection 
day. Enter them in your notebook. Their order is as 
follows: 

1, 2. To the women and to Mary Magdalene. (The 
order in which these appearances occurred is not certain.) 

Oe Lon. eter, 

4. ‘To the two men on the way to Emmaus. 

5. To the Eleven in the upper room. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Jesus himself and the angels gave the good news of his 
resurrection to others. Can you help in this work of spread- 
ing the good tidings? One way would be to bring to class 
some one who does not come. 


/z JONIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Memory Work 


Learn the Easter hymn, “ Jesus Christ Is Risen To-Day.” 
This will be found in “ The Hymnal,” number 244. 


Books AND STORIES 


There are very many stories that you can find to read in 
connection with this lesson. Here are the names of some of 
them: 

“Good Stories for Great Holidays,” by Frances Jenkins 
Olcott. 

“Tell Me Another Story,” by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey. 

“ Faster,’ by Robert Havens Schauffler. (The stories, 
“The Snowdrop,” and “ Mother Hubbard’s Christmas 
Lily.’’) 


SUNDAY SESSION 


JESUS’ APPEARANCES AFTER THE 
RESURRECTION 


John 20 :24-29 
Tut Memory VERSE 


“Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have be- 
lieved.” —John 20 :29b. 


Tue Lesson STORY 


On the evening of the resurrection all the apostles except 
‘Thomas were together in the upper room. For some reason 
Thomas was not there. When his friends told him about 
Jesus, he would not believe. “Except I shall see in his 
hands the print of the nails,” he said, “and put my finger 
into the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I 
will not believe.” 

‘Thomas had been a very loyal follower of Jesus. He was 
a very brave man. At the time of the illness of Lazarus, 
you remember, John 11:16, he had proposed to go back to 
Bethany immediately, although he knew that this would 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 173 


be dangerous. Yet Thomas doubted that Christ had risen 
from the dead, and for this reason he has often been called 
“Thomas the Doubter.”’ 

Jesus had told the disciples to go to Galilee and that he 
would meet them there. For some reason, perhaps because 
it was hard to persuade Thomas that Jesus had risen, they 
did not obey his command right away. On the Sunday after 
the resurrection they were still in Jerusalem, still in the 
upper room with the doors shut. On this night, however, 
Thomas was with them. 

Suddenly, although the doors were still shut, Jesus was 
in their midst—his sixth appearance. He said the words 
which he had used to them very often when he was alive, 
“Peace be unto you.” 

Then he turned to Thomas the doubter, and spoke to him 
particularly. ‘ Reach hither thy finger,” he said, “and see 
my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and put it into my side 
[where the spear of the Roman soldiers had pierced it] : and 
be not faithless, but believing.” 

Thomas had thought that he needed the proof of touching 
Jesus, as well as of seeing and hearing, but he did not. 
When he heard the Saviour’s loving words and saw his lov- 
ing face, he knew him at once and made his great confes- 
sion, ‘“ My Lord and my God.” 

Then Jesus said words that have been a great comfort to 
all the people of the world ever since that day. He told 
Thomas that he believed because he had seen Jesus. Then 
he added the words of our Memory Verse, “ Blessed are 
they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” 

Those words have brought great joy to many of the people 
of the world. We who live nineteen hundred years after the 
days of Jesus cannot see him or hear him or touch him with 
our physical eyes and ears and fingers, yet there are thou- 
sands of people in the world who believe in Jesus, and who 
are blessed because they do. Are you one of those who are 
blessed? Shortly after Jesus began his teaching he said the 
words which we call the Beatitudes, or ‘‘ Blesseds ”—Mat- 
thew 5:3-11. Here is another Beatitude to add to the list—a 
Beatitude which we should all try to understand and to 
realize with all our hearts and our minds and our souls. Be 
sure to learn these words and to remember them always. 


174 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Puttine THE LEsson INTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. Jesus said to Thomas, ‘“ Blessed are they that have 
not seen, and yet have believed.” ‘The Apostle Paul said to 
the jailer at Philippi, “ Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou 
shalt be saved.” Do you believe in him? Are you one of 
those whom he called “ blessed ”’? 

2. The Jews had their weekly Sabbath, or day of rest, 
on Saturday. Christian nations have their Sabbath on Sun- 
day, because this was the day upon which Jesus rose from 
the dead. When you think of what this means, do you 
think that you keep Sunday as you should—the weekly me- 
morial of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead? 

3. We know very little about Thomas except two little 
stories that are given about him. One of them, John 11:16, 
shows that he was a brave man; the other, John 20:24-29, 
has given him the name “ the doubter.””. A man who is hard 
to convince nowadays is often called “a doubting Thomas.” 
Things that art not pleasant about a person are repeated and 
remembered much longer than kind things. Let us always 
try to say the kind things about people rather than the un- 
kind things. 


Tue Lesson TrutH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of True Faith. Jesus said, “ Blessed are they 
that have not seen, and yet have believed.” ‘Though I 
am one of those who have not seen him with my physical 
eyes, I believe in him and have faith in him. Therefore: 

I will show my belief and my faith by trying to do those 
things which I know that he wants me to do. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
HOW TO SHOW OUR FAITH 
James 1 :22-27 
THE CLASS PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to show our true belief 
in thee and in the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. We 
want to be faithful followers—not doubting Thomases, who 


JUMNTORSCHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 175 


think that they must have all things proved to them through 
their sight and hearing and sense of touch. Help us to be 
true believers, and to show our belief and faith in right 
ways. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


I Corinthians 15 :3-7, 12-21; Revelation 5:12; Luke 24:46; 
PohnetO:liel 7,138 3147205 John 1:25; Galatians 5:22. 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


Many Easter hymns may be found in your hymnals. 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Why do we have our day of rest on Sunday instead of 
on Saturday as the Jews did? 

2. Give the appearances of Christ after the resurrection 
about which we have studied so far. 

3. What can you tell about the guard of soldiers set to 

watch Jesus’ tomb? 

4. What women are named in the Bible as going to 
Jesus’ tomb ? 

5. Name the ten disciples to whom Jesus appeared in the 
upper room on the evening of the resurrection day. 

6. How can Juniors of to-day show their belief in Jesus? 


Topics FoR DiscussION oR REPORTS 


Burial Customs of the Jews. 

The Women Who Went First to the Tomb. 

The Order of Jesus’ Appearances on Easter Sunday. 
The Last Beatitude. 

The Two Women Jesus Met on the Way to Emmaus. 
Doubting Thomases Among the People of To-Day. 
A “ Doubting Thomas ” Junior. 

One Good Act a Day. 


2 eh Be ims AN Mee 


CHAPTER XXI 
WEEK DAY SESSION 


JESUS APPEARS-TO THE DISCIPLES ON THE 
SEA OF GALILEE 


John 21 :1-19 


THe Memory VERSE 
“Feed my sheep.”—John 21 :17b. 


THE LEsson STORY 


The angel at the tomb had sent a message from Jesus to 
the disciples that he would meet them in Galilee, Matthew 
28:7, but they had stayed in Jerusalem more than a week 
after the resurrection. Then they went, northward to the 
part of the land of Palestine where most of them had lived 
before they became followers of Jesus. They must have been 
restless and excited, wondering what Jesus wanted them to 
do next. One day there were seven of the disciples together. 
You can find who they were in John 21:2. It was hard for 
Peter, who was in the group, to be unoccupied. He had a 
busy, restless nature, and he always wanted to be doing 
something. 

Perhaps they were sitting in Peter’s house, waiting for 
something—they did not know what. Suddenly Peter 
jumped up. 

“Tm going fishing,” he said. 

“We'll go, too,” the others answered. They were glad 
to have something to do. They went out to the shore of 
the lake and got out their little fishing boat, which they 
had used so often when Jesus was with them. They 
pushed out from the shore and began to fish. 

You remember that in Palestine, people usually fished 
at night. It was evening when the disciples started out. 


176 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 177 


All night long they stayed on the lake. All night long 
they fished, but they didn’t catch even one little fish. As 
daylight came they rowed the boat closer to the shore, 
for they were tired and discouraged. 

As they came nearer to the beach they noticed a Figure on 
the sand. They could see that it was a man, but they did 
not know who it was. He called to them, “ Have you any- 
thing to eat?”’? When they answered “ No,” he said words 
which should have made them know him at once, we should 
think, for they were very much like words that he had said 
before, Luke 5:4, “Cast the net on the right side of the 
boat, and ye shall find.” 

They obeyed the Man’s words, though even then they did 
not know him. They cast out the net, and when they tried 
to pull it in, they found it so full of fish that they could not 
manage it—one hundred and fifty great fish, as they counted 
later. { 

This kind of miracle had happened before, you remember, 
at almost the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, Luke 5:4-10. 
It made John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, realize who the 
Man on the shore was. 

“It is the Lord,” he said, turning to Peter. 

Do you remember how Peter had acted at the time of 
that first miraculous draft of fishes? He fell down at 
Jesus’ feet, and worshiped him. Now he jumped into the 
sea and swam toward the shore—a hundred yards away ; 
he was in such a hurry to reach Jesus that he could not 
wait for the boat. . The rest of the disciples rowed slowly 
to the beach, dragging after them the heavy net. 

The disciples were frightened and awed when they 
came to shore, they didn’t dare even to speak. They 
found that there was a fire on the beach, and that Jesus 
had already laid fish upon it. “ Bring some of the fish 
that you have caught,” Jesus said. In silence they pulled 
in the net. To their surprise it wasn’t torn at all in spite 
of the great number of fish. Quietly they got ready some 
of the fish for their meal. Quietly they ate, when Jesus 
told them to, and gave them the food. They knew him, 
but for some reason they were frightened. 

After they had eaten their breakfast Jesus turned to 
Simon Peter. 


178 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“ Simon, son of John,” he asked, “ lovest thou me more 
than these?” 

“Yea, Lord,’ Simon answered. ‘‘ Thou knowest that 
I love thee. 

“Feed my lambs,” Jesus said. 

A little later Jesus spoke a second time, asking the 
same question, “Simon, son of John, lovest thou me?” 
And again Simon Peter answered that he did love Jesus. 
Jesus this time said, “ Feed my sheep.” 

A third time Jesus asked almost the same question. 
Peter’s feelings were hurt because Jesus asked him the 
same question so many times. “Thou knowest all 
things,” he said. “Thou knowest that I love thee.” 
“Feed my sheep,” Jesus said again, using almost the 
same words. 

Jesus asked Peter the question three times because Peter 
had denied him three times. When he told him to feed his 
sheep and lambs and care for them, he meant that he trusted 
Peter to tell the people of the world about Jesus and his 
love. You remember how Jesus had told the disciples that 
he was the Good Shepherd. John 10:11. The people of the 
world, men, women, and little children were his sheep and 
lambs. He wanted Peter to teach them of his love. 

Then Jesus told Peter something of what was to come 
to him—that he was to be imprisoned and to die for his 
sake. And this was true, for Peter did die as Jesus had 
done, on the cross. But stories which have been handed 
down since the days of long ago tell us that Peter was 
brave at that time—so brave and so bold that he insisted 
upon being crucified head downward, because he said 
that he was not worthy of being crucified in the way that 
Jesus had been. Peter always remembered Jesus’ special 
words to him. He tried to obey them and never after 
this did he deny Jesus, or show himself a coward. 


HANDWORK 


Model on the sand table a map of the Sea of Galilee. 
Make a boat, and a net, and place a little pile of sticks on 
the shore to indicate the fire which the disciples found 
ready. 


JUNIOR, CHURGHESCHOOL LESSONS 479 


NotrEBookK WorkK 


This was the seventh appearance of Jesus to the disciples 
after the resurrection. Enter it in your notebook, giving the 
names of those who were present as far as you can find 
out from John, chapter 21. 


Map Work 


Trace on the map the journey from Jerusalem, where 
Jesus had appeared to his followers in Chapter XX, to 
Galilee, where this lesson takes place. It would take 
about five days for the disciples to make the journey from 
Jerusalem to Galilee. 


EXPpRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Jesus told Peter to feed his lambs and care for his 
sheep. By the lambs and the sheep he meant the people 
of the world. Can you help some one this week? Can 
you bring some child to church or to your class? Then 
you will be doing one of the things which is included in 
Jesus’ command to Peter. 


Memory Work 
A PRAYER SONG TO LEARN 


“Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me; 
Bless thy little lamb to-night; 
Through the darkness be thou near me, 
Keep me safe till morning light. 


“ All this day thy hand has led me, 
And I thank thee for thy care; 
Thou hast warmed me, clothed and fed me, 
Listen to my evening prayer. 


“May my sins be all forgiven, 
Biess the friends I love so well; 
Take us, Lord, at last, to heaven, 
Happy there with thee to dwell.” 


180 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE GREAT COMMISSION 


Matthew 28 :16-20; Mark 16:19, 20; Luke 24 :49-52; Acts 
ele 


Tue Memory VERSE 


“Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, 
baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son 
and of the Holy Spirit . . . and lo, I am with you always, 
even unto the end of the world.’”—Matthew 28:19, 20. 


Tue LESSON StorRY 


Once more Jesus appeared to his followers while they 
were in Galilee. When he came to them this time he gave 
them a command which has come to be known as “the 
Great Commission,” the words of our Memory Verse: 
“Go ye,” he said to the disciples, “and make disciples of 
all the nations.” ‘Those words were the words that sent 
the Eleven out into the world to preach and teach. They 
were the words which made the Christian religion a 
world-wide religion, instead of a religion of the Jews 
alone. In Galilee, too, Jesus appeared to his brother 
James, and it is thought that at this time James came to 
believe that Christ was really the Messiah. Before this 
he had not been convinced, but soon after this time he 
became one of the leaders in the Church at Jerusalem. 

The disciples probably stayed about three weeks in 
Galilee. ‘Then they must have received a special com- 
mand from Jesus to return to Jerusalem, for his tenth 
appearance, as given in the Bible, is again in the neigh- 
borhood of the holy city. He told them to stay there 
until they received a special blessing which he promised 
them. 

His eleventh and last appearance before the ascension 
came very soon after this, forty days after the crucifixion. 
He led them out toward Bethany, to the Mount of Olives, 
and there he repeated to them again words something 
like those of the Great Commission: “ Ye shall receive 
power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and ye 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 181 


shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea 
and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” 

Those were the last words of Jesus before the ascen- 
sion. As the disciples watched, he was taken up; a cloud 
received him, and they could see him no longer. 

And as they gazed upward, suddenly two figures in 
white were with them. They told the disciples that 
Jesus had gone into heaven, but that he would come 
again—“ Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into 
heaven? this Jesus, who was received up from you into 
heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him 
going into heaven.” 

The disciples returned to Jerusalem. But they felt 
very differently from the way that they had felt when 
Jesus was crucified. They were not sad, not grieved. 
They knew that he was a great King, God’s Son, and they 
knew that there was a great work for them to do in the 
world, to tell others of Jesus and his love for all the 
people, even in the uttermost part of the earth. 


Purtinc THE Lesson INto THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. Jesus came to his followers when they were busy with 
their daily duties, doing their usual work as fishermen on 
the Sea of Galilee. He wants us all to do our work in the 
world. He will come to us in the midst of work that seems 
everyday, as well as in greater tasks. 

2. Jesus gave to his followers the work of telling every- 
one in the world of him and of his love. He himself 
preached only three years. He never went very far from 
his own land during his years of preaching. Yet his teach- 
ing is known to and believed by millions of people in the 
world. 

3. There are about a hundred million people in the United 
States. According to statistics there are about forty-two 
millions who are members of churches. How many people 
would each Church and Sunday-school member have to 
bring to Jesus to have everyone in the United States his 
follower? How many would you have to bring to him? 
Are you going to try to do your share? 

4. If there are one billion seven hundred million people 


182 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


in the world, and if five hundred and seventy-six million 
are Christians, and if each Christian should bring to Jesus 
one heathen in a month, how long would it take to convert 
the world? 


THE LkEsson TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Growth. Jesus wanted the story of his 
love for the world to be told everywhere. He com- 
manded his disciples to tell about him first in Jerusalem, 
and then to the uttermost part of the earth. This com- 
mand is for his followers of to-day also. ‘The way to 
spread the knowledge of Jesus is for each of his follow- 
ers\to , ZO.. + . ‘and preach) [or tell] = I heretores 

I will try to do my part in spreading the good news of 
Jesus’ love and to help his Kingdom to grow so that it 
extends over the whole earth. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
HOW WE CAN HAVE JESUS WITH US TO-DAY 
John 17:11, 12, 20-24, 
THE CLAss PRAYER 

O Jesus, help us to do thy will in telling others of thee 
and of thy love for the people of the world. Help us to 
know the best ways in which we can feed thy lambs, as 
Peter did. Let us try to help to spread thy Kingdom until 


it covers the whole earth, as the waters cover the sea. 
For thy name’s sake. Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


Mark 16:15; Philippians 2:5-11; Revelation 1:17, 18; 
Ephesians 4:8; I Peter 3:22; Matthew 25:40. 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


“Jesus, Tender Shepherd, Hear Me.” 
“See, the Conqueror Mounts in Triumph.” 


Jen ORC nG ties CHOOLeLESSONS 183 


“Hail, the Day That Sees Him Rise.” 
Beerisveone: AY Cloud ot Licht-? 
“Thou Art Gone Up on High.” 
“Golden Harps Are Sounding.” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Mention some times when Jesus, before his death, ap- 
peared to his dsiciples, while they were fishing. 

2. Tell of another time than this week’s lesson when 
there was a miraculous draft of fishes. 

3. Go over the appearances of Jesus about which you 
have studied in your lessons. 

4. Name the disciples who were fishing by the Sea of 
Galilee. 

5. Where did the ascension of Jesus take place? 

6. What was the Great Commission ? 

7. What did the two angels say to those who watched 
the ascension? 

8. What did the disciples do after this? 

9. How can we serve Jesus best to-day? 


Topics FoR DiscussION or REPoRTS 


Jesus the Good Shepherd. 

Peter the Under Shepherd. 

The Appearances of Jesus in Galilee. 

The Last Appearance of Jesus. 

Jesus’ Appearance to Paul. Acts 9:3-7. 

How Jesus Comes to Those Who Try to Do His Will. 


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FOLLOWING JESUS DAY BY DAY 
BARY IL 


EARLY FOLLOWERS OF THE LORD JESUS 





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CHAPTER XXII 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE FIRST CHRISTIAN SERMON 
Acts, chapter 2 
THe Memory VERSE 


“And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized 
every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the re- 
mission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the 
Holy Spirit.”—Acts 2 :38. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Jesus’ ascension had taken place. The disciples had 
returned to Jerusalem, where they met together in the 
upper room of the house where they were living. The 
Eleven were there and Mary the mother of Jesus. There, 
too, were Jesus’ brothers and the women who had been 
among his closest followers. Altogether there were about 
one hundred and twenty people present. 

Peter stood up and spoke. He said that he thought it 
was necessary to select another man to take the place of 
Judas, who had betrayed Christ. There should be twelve 
apostles, and the man who was to be the twelfth should 
be one who had known Jesus and had been with him from 
the beginning until the resurrection. The rest agreed 
with Peter, and they chose two to be voted on, ‘The lot 


187 


188 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


fell to Matthias, and he became one of the Twelve. We 
know nothing more about Matthias. 

Jesus had told the apostles to wait in Jerusalem for the 
coming of the Holy Spirit. Jesus had ascended to 
heaven, you remember, forty days after the resurrection. 
For about ten days after the ascension the disciples re- 
mained in Jerusalem, meeting in the upper room, praying 
earnestly and constantly, talking about Jesus and his life 
and deeds. Then on the Day of Pentecost—the fiftieth 
day after the passover, and so about ten days after the 
ascension—the promise of Jesus was fulfilled. 

The friends of Jesus had gathered together in one 
room. “ And suddenly there came from heaven a sound 
as of the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the 
house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto 
them tongues parting asunder, like as of fire; and it sat 
upon each one of them. And they were all filled with the 
Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as 
the Spirit gave them utterance.” 

No one can explain exactly what happened at this time, 
but there was a wonderful miracle. Because it was the 
Day of Pentecost, and a great holiday for the Jews, there 
were in Jerusalem men from all over the world. They 
heard the sound of the rushing, mighty wind, and ran to 
the place from which the sound seemed to come. And as 
they came to the place, each man seemed to hear the 
language of his own country, even though that country 
was far-away Rome or Parthia or Arabia! 

“What has happened?” one asked another. “ They 
are talking the language of our own country instead of 
Greek!” (Greek and Aramaic, a kind of Hebrew, were 
the two languages usually spoken in Palestine at this 
time.) “ What does this mean?” 

“Oh, they have only been drinking too much wine,” 
said another. “It’s nothing.” 

But Peter, as usual, was the first to perceive that here 
was a chance to do something. He stood up bravely 
before that great crowd of strange Jews—he didn’t know 
whether they would turn out to be enemies or friends— 
and preached the first Christian sermon! Wasn’t he a 
different Peter from the Peter of fifty days before? Peter 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 189 


the cowardly denier of Christ had become Peter the brave 
Christian preacher! 

You can read all of that sermon in Acts, chapter 2. Peter 
began with the prophet Joel, who had foretold seven hun- 
dred years before that God’s Spirit should be poured out 
upon the people. That day had come, Peter said, for Jesus 
had come into the world and was the Fulfillment of all that 
the prophets had foretold. He told about Jesus’ crucifixion 
and resurrection. He called the people to account for their 
sins, 

It was a wonderful sermon for Peter, the uneducated 
fisherman, to preach. It showed how much Jesus had 
done for him. It touched the hearts of many of those 
who heard. 

“What shall we do?” those in the crowd asked. 

And Peter said words which he was to say to many 
people, many times after that, “ Repent ye, and be bap- 
tized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto 
the remission of your sins.” 

As a result of Peter’s sermon, three thousand people 
were baptized that day—true believers in Christ, who 
went to the Temple daily, and listened to the apostles’ 
teachings, and tried to live the kind of lives which Jesus 
wanted them to live. 

And day by day, the Bible says, “the Lord added to 
fhempa.). those that: were'saved’ 


HANDWORK 


Draw on the blackboard a small circle. In the center 
of this circle write your own name. Suppose that you 
tell four people about Christ, and divide the circle into 
four parts by two diameters at right angles. Draw a 
second circle larger than the first, but with the same 
center. Extend the four diameters to the edge of this 
circle. Suppose that each of the four persons you have 
told of Christ tells four others. Divide each section of 
the outer rim in four parts. There will be sixteen sec- 
tions, then—sixteen who know of Christ. If each of 
these sixteen tells four others, there will be sixty-four, 
and so the circle will grow larger and larger, as the circle 


190 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


grows when you throw a stone into a pond. Resolve to 
be a center from which the good news of Christ radiates. 


NoteBook WorK 


Begin a new notebook. ‘This is to be called “ Early Fol- 
lowers of the Lord Jesus.” Write down the names of these 
followers as you find«them in Acts, chapter 1. (When you 
put down “the brothers of Jesus,” write in a parenthesis the 
name “ James.’’) 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Plan to take part in the expressional meeting of the 
class. Speak out bravely for Jesus this week as Peter did 
on the Day of Pentecost. 


Map Work 


Copy on the blackboard the map given with this lesson. 
Find the homes of the people who are mentioned in Acts, 
chapter 2. 


Memory Work 
Learn the words of Acts 2:1-4. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE COURAGE Ole PE UH RSA NID i] GyE may 
Acts’3::1-16; 431-23; 


“Now when they beheld the boldness of Peter and John, 
and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant 
men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that 
they had been with Jesus.”—Acts 4:13. 


THE LEsson STORY 


The followers of Jesus were earnest churchgoers— 
that is, they went regularly to the Temple services. So, 
one afternoon, at the hour of prayer, three o’clock, Peter 
and John were going to the Temple, up to the wonderful 
brass door which was called Beautiful. 


JUNTOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 1 


All the apostles had been doing wonderful things in 
Jesus’ name. ‘There were over three thousand people 
who had come to believe in Jesus. And now Peter was 
going to perform another miracle and to win a new fol- 
lower for Jesus, and through him, many others. 

There was a poor crippled beggar lying near the Beau- 
tiful Gate—a man more than forty years old who had 
been lame ever since he was born. [Fach day his friends 
took him to the Temple, where kind people passing by on 
their way to services, would give him money. Hour after 
hour he lay there on the ground with outstretched hand, 
asking for money. How tired of it he must have been! 
How uncomfortable he must have been some days when 
his lame feet and ankles hurt him very much. He was so 
badly crippled that he couldn’t move. He didn’t have 
much to eat—only the little lunch that was brought to 
him each day. He was very unhappy. Perhaps, though, 
he knew something about Jesus. Perhaps, because he 
had been close by the Temple door for so many days, he 
knew a great deal about what was going on. 

As Peter and John came near, he held out his hand as 
he always did, to passers-by. Peter did not reach out a 
coin toward him. He said a few words. At first, prob- 
ably, the man was disappointed. “ Silver and gold have 
inoue; see eterssaid.) #but whatslehaye, that give | thee. 
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” 

He took hold of the man’s right hand, and raised him 
up. The man suddenly felt a strange sensation. His feet 
and ankle bones seemed to grow stronger. He leaped up! 
He stood upright! He could walk! 

And the very first thing that he did was to go into the 
Temple with Peter and John, praising God for his good- 
ness and kindness to him, telling of his cure to everyone. 
Of course there were many people who knew him, for he 
had begged so long in the same place. And of course 
they all crowded around to hear what he had to say. 

Peter was always ready to seize an opportunity. When 
he saw the gathering crowd he preached another wonderful 
sermon about Jesus. As he preached, more and more people 
came together, until the priests from the Temple and the 
captain of the guard interrupted them and arrested them for 


192 JUNIOR CHURCH "SCHOOL LESSONS 


causing a disturbance. But just the same Peter had ac- 
complished a great work. He had brought many people to 
believe in Christ. Now there were five thousand people 
who believed in him. he rulers became more and more 
troubled. 

The next morning Peter and John were brought before 
the sanhedrin, or council, for trial. Many of the same 
men were present as had been present at the trial of 
Jesus—Annas, the high priest, and Caiaphas and others. 
They questioned the apostles closely about how they had 
been able to perform the miracle which everyone knew 
had been performed—for how could they deny this great 
miracle, which so many people had seen, which had cured 
a man whom so many people knew? 

Peter once more spoke—once more he preached a ser- 
mon for Jesus, the third of which we have record since 
the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. 

“ We did this miracle,” he said boldly, “in the name of 
Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God 
raised from the dead. His name is the name in which we 
must be saved.” 

The members of the council could do nothing. They 
were afraid that there would be a disturbance among the 
people if they punished the apostles for performing the 
miracle. The man who had been healed was standing 
near. They themselves knew that there had been a “ not- 
able miracle.” 

They called Peter and John and told them that they 
must never again preach, and teach in the name of Jesus. 
But the apostles did not promise to obey. “ Whether it 
is right in the sight of God to hearken unto you rather 
than unto God, judge ye,” they said. ‘“ We cannot but 
speak the things which we saw and heard.” 

There was nothing more for the council to do. Again 
they threatened the apostles; then they let them go. And 
so the apostles returned to their friends and they all gave 
thanks to God for what he had done among them. 


Puttinec THE Lesson Into THE LIFE oF THE CLAss 
1. When the Holy Spirit came into the hearts of the fol- 
lowers of Christ on the Day of Pentecost, there were great 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 193 


changes in their lives. You can read about some of the 
things they did in Acts 2:46, 47. There are many of the 
things in which we can follow their example. 

(1) ‘They continued “ stedfastly with one accord in the 
temple.” That is, they went regularly to church. Do you 
do that? 

(2) They continued “breaking bread” at home. ‘That 
is, they regularly partook of the Lord’s Supper. Because 
they could not do this in the Temple, they had then seasons 
of communion in their homes. 

(3) “They took their food with gladness.” Do you ever 
grumble at mealtime? 

(4) They praised God. 

(5) They had “favor with all the people.” And they 
won this favor by living unselfish, kindly lives, sharing their 
goods with those poorer than themselves, following the 
Golden Rule. 


Tue LEsson TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of “Turn About Is Fair Play.” Jesus said, 
“Whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, do 
ye also unto them.” Therefore: 

I will try to act always as I would like to have others 
act toward me. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
PREACHING THE GOSPEL 
Markaloc15 


THE CiAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to be brave and cour- 
ageous as Peter and John were. We want to do thy will 
even when it is hard. We want to follow the example of 
the members of the Early Church in Jerusalem and to 
try to do thy will in everything. Help us to do as we 
ought to do. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


194 JUNIOR, CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Isaiah 35:5, 6; Matthew 11:4, 5; 15:30/31-)21314-eActe 
14 :8-10; Job 24:15. 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


“*Go, Preach My-Gospel,’ Saith the Lord.” 
“ Jesus Shall Reign Where’er the Sun.” 
“Am I a Soldier of the Cross?” 

“ Awake, My Soul, Stretch Every Nerve.” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What change did the coming of the Holy Spirit make 
ite eter & 

2. Name a medical missionary and tell something about 
him. 

3. In whose name did Peter tell the council that the 
miracle had been performed ? 

4. Whom did he say he must obey ? 

5. Whom should you obey? 

6. How can you follow the example of the members of 
the Early Church? 


‘Topics For Discussion oR REPORTS 


1. Peter’s Three Sermons. 

2. The Story of a Roman Jew Who Heard Peter’s 
Sermon on the Day of Pentecost. 

3. The Story That the Lame Man Told His Family. 

4. The Sky Pilot to the Lumberjacks. (Frank Higgins.) 

5. How Medical Missions Help to Make the World 
Christian. 

6. A Missionary Doctor. 


CHAPTER XXIII 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
WORKING IN JERUSALEM 
Acts 6:1-7 


| THE Memory VERSE 
“ And the word of God increased.”—Acts 6:7. 


Tue Lesson STORY 


Five thousand members of the Church! And more 
being added every day. That was the story of what was 
happening in Jerusalem. More and more followers of 
Christ were being added to the band of disciples; more 
and more was the good news of the gospel spreading. 

There were many foreigners among those who had 
heard the disciples preach on the Day of Pentecost, and 
many of them believed the message of the apostles. 
These foreigners had difficulty, sometimes, in making 
themselves understood by the apostles. In some way 
there was a little disagreement among them. Some of 
those who had lived in Greece—the “ Grecian Jews ”— 
felt that the poor widows among them were not getting 
their fair share of the food and supplies which the apos- 
tles were distributing each day. The Twelve felt that 
the complaint was just. They did not want anyone in 
Christ’s Church to feel that he was unfairly treated. 
They called a meeting of the congregation. 

“ Perhaps we have not been able to manage all these 
things rightly,” they said. “It is our duty to preach the 
word of God. We think that it would be wise for you to 
select seven men from among you who will manage the 
distribution of money and supplies each day.» We will 
continue to preach to you and to pray for you.” 


195 


196 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


The plan pleased the congregation. ‘They selected 
seven men, and prayed for them, and “ laid their hands 
upon them.” These men were: Stephen; Philip (not 
Philip the disciple) ; Prochorus; Nicanor; Timon; Par- 
menas; and Nicolatis. They have since been called the 
first “ deacons.” 

You will notice that the names of most of these men 
were not Jewish. They were Greek. We think for this 
reason that these men were probably Greeks. At any 
rate their selection was pleasing to the people, for “the 
word of God increased; and the number of the disciples 
multiplied in Jerusalem: exceedingly.” 


Tor STRANGER WITHIN Our GATES 


Have you who live in the United States to-day any 
question to settle like that of the apostles in Jerusalem? 
Have you any foreigners in your school who think that 
they are not fairly ‘treated because they do not under- 
stand exactly what is going on, who are left out of the 
play because they cannot speak ‘English, who cannot get 
good marks in their lessons because it is hard for them to 
understand the recitations? ‘There are many, many 
strangers among us here in America. Almost one sixth 
of the people were born in another country than ours, and 
many of them know hardly a word of English. They do 
very, very much of the work that is done here in America. 
They mine our coal; they work in our factories; they 
make our shoes and gloves and furniture and collars and 
cuffs and shirts. Oh, there are many, many things that 
they do for us in this United States. And when we meet 
little foreign children in school, we must not hurt their 
feelings by making fun of them or by calling them nick- 
names. We must try to help them to feel that they 
really belong to our country, and to become really truly 
Americans. 

“She is such a strange little girl, mother. She wears 
such funny clothes, and she doesn’t understand very well 
what Miss Brown says, and she can’t talk English very 
well, either. She has little, round black eyes, and the 
boys call her ‘ Chink.’ ” 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 197 


“Don’t you think that is unkind, Jean? Wouldn’t it 
be nicer for you to treat her as you treat Alice and Mar- 
garet? She is a stranger in a strange land, and if you 
tease her, you are not doing unto others as you would like 
them to do to you. Just remember how you would feel 
if you were a little girl in China—how strange you would 
seem to the little Chinese children.” 

That night Jean had a strange dream. She thought 
that she was in a strange country. All around her were 
queer buildings, pagodas, such as there were on mother’s 
Canton china. She walked down the street, and the 
people were all riding in funny little carts, drawn by men 
instead of horses. She went into a house finally—a queer 
little house—and found there many little girls and boys, 
eating rice and drinking tea. 

As she came through the door they surrounded her. 
They pulled her into the room; they passed their hands 
over her dress and laughed at it. They pointed out her 
curls and her blue eyes, and though she didn’t exactly 
know what they said, she knew in her dream that they 
were thinking she was a very queer little girl. But they 
were polite, too. They made her sit down at the funny 
little table. They gave her a bowl of rice and some chop- 
sticks. Poor Jean! She tried to eat, for she was very 
hungry. But she couldn’t manage the chopsticks! She 
couldn’t get any rice into her mouth. And suddenly she 
saw that all the children were laughing at her, and she 
woke up crying as if her heart would break. 

“Tl never, never make fun of any strange little girl 
. ot boy again,” she said. “Tl be kind to them always, no 
matter how different they seem from what we are. I'll 
try to be just as kind and friendly to them as I am to 
Margaret and Alice, for I know now how badly they feel 
when they are strangers in a strange land.” 


HANDWORK 


Can you make an article of clothing for an immigrant 
child? Perhaps you can mend some of your old toys for 
them. Or perhaps you can make some knitted squares to 
put in an afghan. 


198 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


NoteBook Work 


Enter in your notebook the names of the seven dea- 
cons, under the heading, “The First Deacons of the 
Christian Church.” 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


If you know any foreign children, if there are any in 
your day school or church school, try to be kind to them 
in every way that you can and to make them feel at home 
in this great country of ours, which is so new and 
strange to them. 


MEmory Work 


Learn the words of the following poem of Robert Louis 
Stevenson: 


ForEIGN CHILDREN 


Little Indian, Sioux or Crow, 

Little frosty Eskimo, 

Little Turk or Japanee, 

Oh! don’t you wish that you were me? 


You have seen the scarlet trees 

And the lions over seas; 

You have eaten ostrich eggs, 

And turned the turtles off their legs. 


Such a life is very fine, 

But it’s not so nice as mine: 
You must often, as you trod, 
Have wearied not to be abroad. 


You have curious things to eat, 

I am fed on proper meat; 

You must dwell beyond the foam, 
But I am safe and live at home. 


Little Indian, Sioux or Crow, 

Little frosty Eskimo, 

Little Turk or Japanee, 

Oh! don’t you wish that you were me? 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 199 


SUNDAY SESSION 
SLEPHEN, THE FIRST CHRISTIAN -MARTYR 
Acts 6:8 to 7:60 


Tor Memory VERSE 


“And Stephen, full of grace and power, wrought great 
wonders and signs among the people.’”—Acts 6:8. 


THE Lesson Story 


One of the men who was selected as one of the seven 
deacons of the Early Church in Jerusalem was Stephen, 
“a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit.” Stephen 
was probably a Greek, for his name is Greek. It means 
“a wreath” or “a crown.” This name was significant 
for Stephen won a crown—the crown of martyrdom. 

Stephen was full of grace and power, the Bible tells us, 
and he did many miracles among the people. He spoke in 
the various synagogues, or churches, where the foreign 
Jews worshiped. We in our great cities to-day have 
churches where our foreign people worship God in their 
own language, and in Jerusalem there were in the same 
way churches for those who did not speak Hebrew— 
there were churches for the people from Cyrene and 
Alexandria in Africa, and for the people from Cilicia in 
Asia, for instance. 

Stephen told the good news of Jesus in these churches. 
He spoke so bravely and so well that the leaders of the 
Jews could not answer his arguments. They felt about 
him as they had felt about Jesus himself. They hired 
men who accused Stephen, as they had accused Jesus, of 
speaking against the law of Moses. They brought him 
before the council as Jesus had been brought before the 
same cruel judges and accusers. As the members of the 
council sat in their seats in a semicircle around him, he 
began his defense. As he stood there, the Bible tells us, 
his face was like the face of an angel. 

Stephen was as brave as Peter had been. He went over 
the history of the Jews from the beginning. He said 
that Abraham and Jacob, whom all the Jews loved and 


200 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


honored, had not obeyed the law of Moses, because they 
had lived before that law was given. Even Moses and 
Joshua, who had found great favor with God, had not 
been able to worship in the Temple, because they had 
lived before Solomon built the Temple. Yet God loved 
all these men and had shown them honor. The Jews 
themselves all loved their memory, and showed them 
honor. 

Then Stephen accused the men of the council, the 
people of his own day. He called them “ stiffnecked,” 
and accused them of having murdered the Righteous 
One, Jesus Christ. 

The members of the council let Stephen go on to this 
point. Then they could not stand his accusations any 
longer. They “‘ gnashed on him with their teeth.” But 
Stephen, “ being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up sted- 
fastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus 
standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I 
see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on 
the right hand of God.” 

And just then, the members of the council cried out 
with loud voices. ‘They stopped their ears so that they 
could not hear him. They seized brave Stephen and took 
him out of the city. The witnesses took off their gar- 
ments and laid them at the feet of a young Pharisee 
named Saul. Then they stoned him, stoned him until he 
died, crying to the Lord and saying, “ Lord Jesus, receive 
my spirit.” 

Stephen’s last words are something like the last words 
of Jesus on the cross. Jesus had prayed for his enemies, 
“ Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do,” 
and Stephen, too, prayed for those who killed him, “ Lord, 
lay not this sin to their charge.” So he died with a 
prayer of forgiveness on his lips—the first martyr to die 
for Christ in the Early Church in Jerusalem. 


ForGIvENEss To-Day 


An old writer of Church History, named Tertullian, who 
lived about the year 160 to 230 says, “The blood of the 
martyrs is the seed of the Church.” Stephen died, but his 


JOUNIORT CHURCH SCHOOL DESSONS 201 


work went on. Many, many hundreds of Christ’s followers 
have died since that day, but the work goes on and on. 

In the year 1900 there was a terrible massacre of Chris- 
tians in China. Missionaries, men and women and children, 
were killed by the hundred by the Chinese rebels, who were 
called ‘“ Boxers.” Among those who were killed were a 
young man, Dr. Courtland Van Renssalaer Hodge, and his 
wife, Elsie Sinclair Hodge, a very popular graduate of a 
college in the United States, who had given her life service 
to China. Elsie Hodge had a sister who was going to the 
same college. How do you think she felt about the people 
who had made her sister and brother-in-law martyrs? Do 
you think she hated them? No, indeed. Even before she 
had finished college she decided to go to China as a mis- 
sionary’s wife, too. And to-day she is helping those poor 
Chinese to know of Jesus, and his love, instead of hating 
them. She must have felt as Stephen did. She must have 
forgiven them and prayed to Jesus, “ Lay not this sin to 
their charge.” 


Purtinc THE LEsson INtTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. We shall probably never have to forgive enemies who 
are putting us to death. But sometimes people will do us 
a wrong which is little in comparison with the wrong that 
they did to Stephen. We should forgive them for it and 
try to feel as Stephen and as Jesus did, “ Lay not this sin 
to their charge.” 

2. Before you ask God to forgive others, be sure that 
you ask him to forgive you yourself, for you probably have 
been to blame in some way, or others would not think that 
you are at fault. 

3. Be sure not to be a hypocrite or a Pharisee, and think 
yourself better than other people are. 


Tur Lesson TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAw 


The Law of Self-Examination. None of us is perfect 
in God’s sight. We are all to blame sometimes. There- 
fore: 

Before I blame others, I will examine my own conduct 
and be sure that I myself am not to blame. I will ask 


202 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


forgiveness for my faults both of God and of the person 
to whom I owe the apology. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
HOW WE SHOULD TREAT OTHERS 
Matthew 7:12 


THE CLass PRAYER 


O God, the Helper of all thy people in ages past, help 
us, too, to be brave in standing up for thee and for the 
right. Help us in all our times of trouble to be brave. 
Help us to say when we are wronged, as Stephen did, 
“Lay not this sin to their charge.’ Help us to forgive 
others. ‘“ Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those 
who trespass against us.” For Jesus’ sake, Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Acts 12:1, 2; Hebrews 11:37,'38 ; 11 Corinthians f1e24-278 
Revelation 9795916 :14-1/72503;-21)- 021-77, Detteronanm 
10:18, 19. 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


“Yield Not to Temptation.” 
“The Son of God Goes Forth to War.” 
Missionary Hymns. 


QUESTIONS FoR UsE IN THE MEETING 


Name the seven deacons of the Church in Jerusalem. 
Why were they chosen? 

Who was Stephen? 

Tell what you can of Stephen’s address to the council. 
Compare the trial of Christ and that of Stephen. 

Who was present at Stephen’s death ? 


ie 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 203 


‘Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


The Strange Boy in My School. How to Treat Him. 
Stephen’s Crown. 

Philip the Deacon and the Other Philip. 

Foreign Children in Our Land. 

Martyr Missionaries. 

. Faithfulness in Little Things and Faithfulness in 
Great Things. 


Crates eae ae 


CHAPTER XXIV 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
TO RINE YOu. Prete 
Acts, chapter 8 


THE MEMorY VERSE 


“And there arose on that day a great persecution against 
the church which was in Jerusalem; and they were all scat- 
tered abroad throughout the regions of Judza and Samaria, 
except the apostles.”—Acts 8:1b. 


Tuer Lesson Story 


After the death of Stephen the followers of Jesus were so 
severely persecuted in Jerusalem that many of them left the 
city and went to different parts of Samaria and Judea. In 
this way persecution helped in carrying out Jesus’ command, 
that his followers were to preach in Judza and Samaria and 
“unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Acts 1:8. 

Among those who left Jerusalem was Philip the 
deacon, who went to Samaria, and there preached about 
Christ. Philip was an eloquent preacher; he also was a 
true follower of Christ, and he performed many miracles 
in Samaria. Philip, as well as. Peter and John, wasjable 
to heal the lame and to drive out unclean spirits, so that 
there was great excitement and rejoicing in the city. In 
fact, the excitement was so great that word about what 
Philip was doing in Samaria reached Jerusalem, and 
Peter and John came to Samaria and prayed with the 
believers there, so that the Holy Spirit came upon them. 

There was in Samaria a man named Simon who had 
for many years deceived the people into a belief that he 
was a sort of magician, a wonder-worker. In some way 
Simon was able to cheat the people. But when he saw 
the miracles of Philip, he knew that Philip could do 


204 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 205 


things which he could not do. He saw how the Holy 
Spirit fell upon the people when Peter and John laid their 
hands upon them. He wanted the same power. But he 
had an entirely wrong idea of Christianity. He tried to 
buy from the apostles the power which they had, which 
God had given them. 

Peter was very indignant. “Thy silver perish with 
thee,” he said, “ because thou hast thought to obtain the 
cift of God with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot 
in this matter: for thy heart is not right before God. 
Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray the Lord, 
if perhaps the thought of thy heart shall be forgiven thee.” 

But Simon was not a true follower of Christ. He did 
not truly repent, though he asked Peter to pray for him. 
He wanted the power of Christ in order to make money 
for himself, and not to do good to others, and so it was 
not given to him. 

Though there were many in Samaria who believed in 
Christ and loved him, Simon was not one of them. He 
was one of those whom the apostles did not reach. 

But there is a pleasanter part of the story of Philip. 
God had other work for him to do—a work which spread 
the good tidings to still more distant parts of the earth. 
As he preached and taught there in Samaria, an angel 
messenger came to him from the Lord, with a strange 
message. He was to leave the place where his work 
seemed to be accomplishing so much, and to go south, 
down from Jerusalem toward Gaza, and the desert region. 
The message must have seemed strange to Philip, but he 
obeyed. As he went along the road he perhaps wondered 
why he had been sent on such an errand. But he soon 
found out, for as he passed along the road, he heard a 
sound behind him. A cavalcade of horses and chariots 
was catching up to him. It was the escort of an officer 
of Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians—in fact, the man 
who had charge of all her treasure. He was a believer in 
the Jewish religion and had been to Jerusalem to worship 
in the Temple. Now he was returning home. He was 
sitting in his chariot reading aloud from the Scriptures. 

The Holy Spirit spoke to Philip and told him to go 
near the Ethiopian. Philip obeyed and heard him reading 


206 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


from the book of the prophet Isaiah, and God had so 
planned it that he was reading the very passage in which 
Isaiah told of the coming of the Messiah. 

Philip ran up to him. “ Do you understand what you 
are reading?” he asked. 

“ How can I understand, unless some one helps me?” 
the Ethiopian asked.. And then he invited Philip to sit in 
the chariot with him, and explain the Bible passage that 
he had been reading. 

This was exactly the work for which Philip had been 
sent to the Ethiopian. He preached to him and taught 
him about Jesus and his message to the world. And he 
preached so well that in a very short time the Ethiopian 
understood the message. He became a follower of Jesus. 
He asked to be baptized. 

Philip baptized the man. As soon as this was done 
they parted, and the eunuch did not see Philip again. But 
he went on his way rejoicing, spreading the gospel news 
we are sure, among all his friends, and carrying it to 
Ethiopia and lands far away. Gradually the good tidings 
of Jesus’ love was being spread, as Jesus had said that it 
should be spread. 

Philip, in the meanwhile, next is heard of in Azotus, 
and later in Czesarea. There he lived for a long time, for 
many years later the Bible tells us that Paul the apostle 
visited him there. 


HANDWORK 


Work out on the sand table the story of the meeting of 
Philip and the Ethiopian. Find the picture of a chariot, 
and paste it on cardboard so that it will stand, or make a 
chariot for yourselves, from heavy paper. Put an 
umbrella-like canopy over it, for in hot countries a pro- 
tection from the sun is necessary. 


NoteBook WorkK 


Enter this lesson in your notebook. Your lessons so 
far in The Acts have been mainly about Peter. ‘There 
was one lesson about Stephen. Now we have Philip. 


JUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 207 


Map Work 


Find and be able to point out on the map Samaria, 
Gaza, Azotus, Czesarea, Ethiopia. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Philip was kind to the Ethiopian, though he was of 
another color, and another race. See if you cannot show 
kindness to one of another race this week. When there 
is a baptismal service in your church, pay careful atten- 
tion and remember that Philip baptized the Ethiopian. 


Memory Work 


Learn the words of the Intermediate Catechism about 
baptism. “ Baptism is the sacred use of water, as ap- 
pointed by Jesus Christ, to signify God’s cleansing us of 
our sins, our consecration to God, and our membership 
in the Church.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
SPREADING THE GOOD TIDINGS 
Romans 10:8-15 


THe MEmMory VERSE 


“ How shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall 
they preach, except they be sent? ””—Romans 10:14, 15. 


THE Lesson Story 


Philip was sent by the Holy Spirit to be a messenger 
to a stranger, and through the Ethiopian the message of 
Jesus’ love for the world was spread farther and farther 
from little Palestine, where it started. And that is what 
God’s messengers of to-day are doing. They are spread- 
ing the good tidings throughout the world, trying to 
reach the uttermost parts of the earth. 

You all know where Japan is. You all know what a 


208 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOLER SSONS 


wonderfully progressive country it is nowadays and how 
quick its people are to learn and to copy other people. So 
it seems hard to realize that less than seventy-five years 
ago, Japan was a country almost closed to foreigners. 
They did not want strangers among them. They did not 
want to learn new ways. ‘They closely guarded their 
coast by a cordon of boats so that few foreigners could 
come into the country. The man in charge of a number 
of these boats was a brave and trusted officer of the 
Government named Murata, a man whose title was 
Wakasa no Kami, that is “ the honorary lord of Wakasa.” 
Murata kept a close watch of the part of the coast of 
which he had charge—Nagasaki Harbor—so that no 
Japanese could get out, and no foreigner could get in, 
with the exception of a few Dutch traders. 

Murata was an intelligent man. He saw that the 
Dutch traders had something which the Japanese did not 
have. He tried to find out what caused the people of 
Christian nations to be different from his own people. 

One day as he was out on the bay in a little boat, in- 
specting his fleet, he saw something floating in the water. 
He grasped it. He found that it was a little book, very 
different from anything that he had ever seen before in 
type and binding and language. He was curious about 
it, but he was afraid to ask openly. He inquired in secret 
and finally found out that it was the Bible in Dutch. He 
was more and more interested. He found that there was 
a translation of the Bible in Chinese. He could read 
Chinese, and so he sent a man to China and obtained a 
copy. He read and studied and soon he was praying to 
the true God for a teacher who would explain to him the 
meaning of what he read. 

God works in mysterious ways, for while these things 
were happening to Murata, America and Japan were coming 
to an agreement and in 1852-1854 a treaty was made by 
which Japan was opened to foreigners. And of course there 
was a missionary ready to go, for God was back of all these 
things. Though the Christian religion was still forbidden in 
Japan, Guido Verbeck went from America to teach the 
Japanese. And though Guido Verbeck did not know of 
Murata, and Murata did not know of him, they were brought 


PONTOREC HUNCH SCHOOL LESSONS 209 


together. The Holy Spirit led them until they met as he had 
led Philip and the Ethiopian. A messenger named Motono 
was sent by Murata to the missionary; his brother Ayabé 
was in his first Bible class, and finally the two met. 

“On the 14th of May, 1866, to the joy and surprise of 
Mr. Verbeck, Murata appeared, with his brother Ayabé, 
Motono, his two sons, and a train of followers. He was 
tall and dignified, a gentleman of frank, ingenious mien, and 
about fifty years old. After his greeting, which was in the 
impressive manner of ancient Japanese courtesy, he said to 
Mr. Verbeck: 

““T have long known you in my mind, and desired to 
converse with you, and I am very happy that, in God’s 
providence, I am at last permitted this privilege.’ 

“In the course of their conversation, this seeker after 
God said: 

“Sir, I cannot tell you my feelings when for the first 
time I read the account of the character and work of 
Jesus Christ. I had never seen, or heard, or imagined 
such a person. I was filled with admiration, overwhelmed 
with emotion, and taken captive by the record of his 
nature and life.’ 

“ Murata showed great familiarity with the Bible, quoting 
from it with ease and point. He was ready to believe all 
that Jesus taught and to do whatever he required. The 
conversation lengthened into hours. Then Murata asked 
baptism for himself and Ayabé. The missionary warned 
them that there was no magic in baptism. All superstitious 
notions they might have as to its efficacy must be laid aside. 
Those who received the rite assumed sacred obligations of 
service. Explaining the form of baptism ... they were 
asked to decide as in the presence of God. Without falter- 
ing they renewed their request, only asking that the act 
should not be made public. They knew too well that not 
only would their own lives be in danger, but that their 
families would have to die with them. Death by crucifixion 
on the bamboo cross for a commoner, fara-kiri for a samurai 
was the punishment. 

“Tn full confession of sin, with vital faith in Jesus as the 
Christ of God, loyally desiring One whom they had long 
before acknowledged as Master, they took the step. On the 


210 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


next Sunday, the evening of May 20, the three men, Murata, 
Ayabé, and Motono, were baptized in Mr. Verbeck’s parlor. 
Then, joyfully they obeyed the further command of Jesus, 
“This do in remembrance of me.” After the sacramental 
meal Murata told the story of the Moses of his deliverance, 
—the book ‘‘ drawn out” of the water twelve years before. 
Then the three men went away happy. 

Isn’t that a wonderful story? Doesn’t it show that the 
Holy Spirit leads men nowadays just as he did in Bible 
times? And don’t you want to help along work like this— 
spreading the good news through all the world? 


Purtine THE LEssSoN INTO THE LIFE oF THE CLASS 


1. Jesus calls us in strange ways to do his work. He 
wants us all to be his messengers. We cannot all be mis- 
sionaries, but we can all help in giving the good tidings. 

2. We all can have Bibles of our own. We do not have 
the trouble in getting the Bible that Murata had. But do 
we study it as he did? Do we know it and believe its mes- 
sage and try to do what it tells us is right as he did? 


Tur LEsson TRuTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Faithful Seeking. Jesus tells us that if we 
ask we shall receive, if we seek we shall find. We should 
seek for the truth as Murata did and as the Ethiopian did, 
and we shall find it. Therefore: 

I will seek to know God’s will for me with prayer and 
faith, and then I will try to obey it. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
SPREADING THE GOSPEL TO-DAY 
ACISHLLS 
THE CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to be seekers after the 
truth, as the. Ethiopian was and as the Japanese Murata 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS ae 


was. Then when thy messengers come to us as they 
came to these two men, may we listen to their teachings 
and try to carry them out in our lives. For Jesus’ sake. 
Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


feotaimoee/ aomansel0s bo-lo-) vMalachi(3<l\Luke/Z2-10- 
10:2; Matthew 9:37, 38; 28 :18-20. 


HymMNns For USE IN THE MEETING 


“Jesus Shall Reign Where’er the Sun.” 
“And Is the Time Approaching ?” 

“ Hark, the Bugle Call of God.” 
“Where the Fight Is Hardest.” 
wCitistior the World?’ 

“We've a Story to Tell.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Who was Simon? Name as many Simons of the Bible 
as you can. 

2. ‘Tell something about Philip’s work in Samaria. 

3. Where is Ethiopia? Who was. Candace? 

4. What passage of Scripture was the Ethiopian read- 
ing? Perhaps you can find this in the margin of your Bibles. 

5. Who was Murata? 

6. What do you know about the book picked up out of 
the water? 


7. Who was Guido Verbeck ? 


Topics FoR DIscUSSION OR REPORTS 


Modern Messengers of Jesus. 

Philip the Deacon and Philip the Apostle. 
Japan and America. 

Missionaries in Japan. 

The Flowery Kingdom. 


rule Seer aches 


GHAR LEROY, 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
PETER’S VISION 
Acts 10:9-16 


Toe Memory VERSE 


“Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of per- 
sons: but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh 
righteousness, is acceptable to him.”—Acts 10:34, 35. 


THE LESSON STORY 


After the death of Stephen, the followers of Christ had 
been persecuted. At first the apostles remained, but later 
many of them had left Jerusalem. Peter, too, had left the 
city. He went to Joppa, on the seacoast. While he was 
there he performed many miracles; one of the greatest 
of these was when he restored to life a good woman 
named Tabitha. 

While Peter was in Joppa he stayed at the house of 
Simon, the tanner. Simon’s house was like so many 
houses in the Bast. it hada flat rool and sine oe 
country, the roof is often the pleasantest part of the 
house. One day about noon, Peter went up on the roof 
to wait for supper time. He was hungry and sleepy, and 
while he was waiting, he fell asleep. 

Before this time the apostles had told the good tidings 
about Jesus only to the Jews. They had begun to teach 
at Jerusalem, as Jesus had commanded, but they were 
just beginning to go farther. Peter did not realize as 
yet exactly what Jesus meant when he had commanded 
his followers to preach the gospel to the whole creation. 
He still felt that the Jews were the best people in the 
world—God’s chosen people. But really the Jews had 


le, 


FUN ORMCrURCH SS CHOOTSLESSONS Zl 


refused to receive Christ, and Jesus’ message was to be 
taken to everyone in the world. 

So, as Peter slept there on the roof of Simon’s house in 
Joppa, God taught him a lesson. He sent him a sort of 
dream. In this dream it seemed to Peter that a great 
sheet was let down from heaven. In it were all sorts of 
animals and all sorts of creeping things and all sorts of 
birds. Anda voice spoke to hungry Peter, saying, “ Rise, 
Peter; kill and eat.” But Peter in his dream said, “ Not 
so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common 
and unclean.” You remember that God had long before 
this given to the Jews very strict rules about eating and 
drinking. They could eat only certain animals. Peter 
had always obeyed these rules very strictly. He did not 
want to eat forbidden food. 

But God’s voice spoke again to Peter. “ What God 
hath cleansed, make not thou common.” 

Three times this was repeated, and then the sheet dis- 
appeared again into heaven, and Peter was left wonder- 
ing what it meant. 

But Peter found out later the meaning of his vision. 
God wanted to show him that he loved equally all the 
people in the world—Jew or Gentile, black or white or 
yellow. All were equal in God’s sight. All were his 
loved children. 


HANDWORK 


Complete the garment or the toy begun last week for 
the “stranger within our gates.” 


Mar Work 


Find Joppa on your map of Palestine. It is also called 
“Jaffa.” Mark it as the place where God gave to Peter 
a great vision. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Perhaps your class can act out “ Americans All,” which 
is given on pages 214-215. 

Continue to be kind and helpful to any foreign children 
whom you may know. 


214 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Memory Work 
Learn the flag pledges given on page 216. 


AN EXERCISE FOR A WEEK Day MEETING OF THE CLASS 
AMERICANS ALL 


(A Pageant of Americanization. ) 


(Curtain rises on the Goddess of Liberty, surrounded by a group 
of American children from all parts of the United States. The 
various states may be indicated by banners. Each child should have 
several small American flags.) 


MiB Rn ve 


Greetings to you, my children dear, 

All who are gathered around me here, 

From North and South, from West and East, 

From the State that is greatest, from that which is least. 


You from that far-away Western coast— 

California—an eager host. (Points to California onildeee 
You from Lake Michigan’s northern shores, 

With its lumber camps and its copper stores. 

You from Florida’s orange grove, 

And you from the plains where the cattle rove. 

You from the state where the coal mines, stored, 

Give warmth to the world, from your diamond hoard, 
And you from the city around us here— 

Welcome to all, my children dear. 


You have gathered to greet a stranger band 
Who come to seek homes in our own dear land, 
Greet them as friends, my children dear, 

Show them we’re glad to have them here, 


(Enter timidly, a little Italian girl.) 


I come from a land of warmth and light 
Where the skies are blue, and the sun is bright. 
I feel the chill of your winter’s cold, 

I’m afraid of the dark, and the winds so bold. 
But if I feel that your hearts are warm 

IT know that the weather will do me no harm. 


(American children take her by the hand and draw her into the 
group, giving her an American flag.) 


PUNIORSCIURCHE SCHOOL LESSONS 215 


(Enter Irish laddie, dressed in St. Patrick’s Day green.) 


Oh, the green of old Ireland, the green of the shamrock 
Is dear to the heart of each Irish lad true, 

But we come to America, thinking and hoping 

That soon we'll be loving America, too. 

So make us your friends, then, 

We're waiting to love you, 

We'll do all the things 

That you want us to do. 


(American children draw him also into the circle, giving him also 
a flag. This ts done in each case.) 


(Swiss girl enters.) 


I come from the land where the glacier sweeps 
Down from the heights where the chamois leaps, 
I come to a new land, so far from the old, 

Over the ocean, where deep waves rolled. 

And yet this land is like our own— 

Both are republics, and both have shown 

How freedom blesses the people who strive 

To keep all their God-given powers alive. 

Our republic is small, we know. 

We hope in this greater land to grow, 

And because we are true to the old and the tried, 
We'll be true to the new, where the Highest will guide. 


(Greck boy comes in.) 


I’m Tony, who keeps the bootblack stand— 

A stranger in this so very strange land. 

I come from Greece, where the warm winds blow, 
I’m not quite used to your ice and snow. 

And yet I love America, too. 

Its people are kind and there’s work to do. 

But oh, please be friends, for we’re homesick boys, 
Though we whistle and sing and make lots of noise, 
As we polish your shoes till they gleam and shine; 
Just say a kind word, if you have the time. 


(Czechoslovak girl enters.) 


We love our own dear country, 
Which seems so far away, 

But our hearts were torn with trouble, 
And we could no longer stay. 

So we sought this land of freedom, 

Of liberty and wealth, 

Where we can work and play and live 
In peace and joy and health. 


216 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


(Chinese boy enters.) 


Me little Ah Sid, a Chlistian kid, 
And J’ll be Amelican, too. 
Though I still have a queue 

As my pa used to do, 

Me no Chinee—Amelican true. 


(Japanese girl speaks.) 


I’m Michi Kawai, come here from Japan. 

I'll learn to be like you as fast as I can. 

And if you will help me and teach me your ways 

I'll know very soon all your games and your plays. 
At home I played tag with Kato on my back— 

He’s my brother, you know, and it takes quite a knack 
To jump and to run with a burden like that; 

And I didn’t have very much chance to get fat! 

But now he can walk, and I’m free as can be! 

I’m American, too, as you surely can see! 


LAL SR RADE 


Welcome, welcome, children dear, 

America wants you! We’re glad you are here! 
But there’s one thing more that we want you to do. 
The real American must be true 

To the God of our fathers, who settled this land, 
Where religion and freedom go hand in hand. 


(Two children come forward with Christian flag and large Ameri- 
can flag.) 


Let us give our pledge to these flags that we raise, 
And then sing our hymn of allegiance and praise. 


(All together repeat the pledge to the flags, saluting each in turn.) 
(To the National Flag: ) 


“T pledge allegiance to my flag and to the Republic for which it 
stands: one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice to all.” 


(To the Christian Flag:) 


“T pledge allegiance to my flag and to the Saviour for whose 
Kingdom it stands: one brotherhood uniting all mankind in service 
and love.” 


(Close by singing ‘“‘ America.”) 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS Zils 


SUNDAY SESSION 
Pir hee NO Per N EURLON 
Acts 10:1-8, 17-48 
THE MrEMory VERSE 
“To him bear all the prophets witness.”—Acts 10:43. 


Tuer Lesson Story 


About forty miles from Joppa, or Jaffa, where Peter 
was staying at the house of Simon the tanner, was the 
city of Czesarea. This was not Czsarea Philippi, the city 
to which Jesus went, but another place on the seacoast. 
In this Czesarea there lived a man named Cornelius, who 
is called the “ centurion of the band called Italian ”—that 
is, he was a Roman officer of a band of soldiers from 
Italy. But this centurion was different from many of the 
Romans. He was not a Jew, but he believed in the God 
of the Jews, the one true God. He was what was called 
in those days “a God-fearer.” 

One afternoon, about three o’clock, Cornelius had a 
vision, a sort of dream. An angel came to him in this 
vision and when he asked the meaning the angel gave him 
a message. Cornelius must have been a very good man, 
for the angel’s first words were words of praise: “ Thy 
prayers and thine alms are gone up for a memorial before 
God,” he began. Then he told Cornelius to send men to 
Joppa, to the house of Simon the tanner. There they 
would find Peter. They were to bring him back to 
Czesarea. 

Cornelius did not understand what the vision meant, 
but he obeyed. He sent for three men—two of his serv- 
ants and a soldier. He told them what had happened to 
him and he sent them to Joppa—a journey which would 
take a whole day. 

They reached the house of Simon just after Peter had 
had the vision of the great sheet let down from heaven, 
when he was still puzzling over the meaning of God’s 
message to him. The Spirit told Peter as exactly what 
was to happen as Cornelius had been told about Peter. 
“Behold, three men seek thee. But arise, and get thee 


218 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


down, and go with them, nothing doubting: for I have 
sent them.” 

Peter obeyed. He found the three men at the door. 
He told them that he was the man for whom they were 
looking and received their message. He invited the men 
in and entertained them overnight. 

The next morning Peter, the three messengers from 
Cornelius, and certain other followers of Christ from 
Joppa started for Ceesarea. When they reached the house 
of Cornelius, they found gathered together Cornelius’ 
family and his close friends. 

Cornelius fell at Peter’s feet, but Peter raised him up 
again, saying, “Stand up; I myself also am a man.” 
Then he and Cornelius talked with each other and ex- 
plained what had happened to each of them. Peter saw 
at last the meaning of his vision—that God wanted the 
good tidings of Jesus to go to all the people of the world, 
not only to Jews but to Romans and Greeks also. Peter 
had known Jesus’ Great Commission before this, but he 
had not understood it fully. Now he knew better what 
God wished. 

And so Peter gave the message of Jesus to Cornelius 
and his friends. He preached another wonderful sermon, — 
the fourth that we have in the book of The Acts. And as 
he preached, Cornelius and his followers believed. The 
Holy Spirit fell on them all. Peter and those with him 
could not be mistaken. They saw that God was blessing 
the Gentiles also. 

Peter was awed and surprised, but he took the next 
step. ‘Can any man forbid the water, that these should 
not be baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit as 
well as we?” he asked. And then he commanded that 
Cornelius and his family and friends should be baptized. 
They were true members of Christ’s Church, even though 
they were of a different race from the Jews who had first 
been God’s chosen people. 


Purtinc THE LEsson INTO THE LIFE, OF THE CLASS 


1. God taught Peter the lesson that he loved all the 
people of the world—Jew or Gentile, American or Japanese, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL -LESSONS 219 


black or white, red or yellow Since God loves all peoples, 
we should try to love them all, too, and treat them all 
equally well. 

2. Cornelius was a good man, even though he was a 
Gentile, or God’s angel would not have appeared to him. 
There are many good men and women in heathen countries 
who do not know about Jesus, and who are unhappy with- 
out knowing why. If we send our missionaries to them, 
and teach them about Jesus and his love, we will give to 
these people the joy and happiness which they have not been 
able to find in heathen religions. 

3. Both Peter and Cornelius obeyed God’s command im- 
mediately. Let us try, too, to obey when God commands us. 


TuE Lesson TRutTH EXPRESSED IN A Law 


The Law of Love. Jesus’ message was a message of 
love. He wanted this message of love to be given to 
all the world. He wanted us to tell others of his love 
and for his sake to love all the people of the world. 
Therefore: 

“Tet us love one another.” 


Mar Work 


Find Cesarea and Joppa, or Jaffa, on the map and 
mark in your notebook the events that happened at these 
places. How far were they from Jerusalem? 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
PREACHING TO THE GENTILES 
Ephesians 3:6-8 
THE CLaAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we know that you want the 
message of your love to be told to all the people of the 
world. We know that we are your messengers. Help us 
so to live that we may show to others that we are 


220 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Christians. Help us at school and at home to show how 
American Christian Juniors may please our heavenly 
Father, and Jesus our Saviour. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Mark 16:15; Acts -1:8* 10:34, 35% 11:20) 21 Is] ohneaere 
10, 11; Ephesians 4:32); Philippians 2:9-11; Romans 10:12. 


Hymns For USE IN THE MEETING 


“ From Ocean Unto Ocean.” 

“All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name.” 

“ Onward, Christian Soldiers.” 

“The Son of God Goes Forth to War.” 

“ Fight the Good Fight with All Your Might.” 
“ Shine on Our Land, Jehovah, Shine.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE iN THE MEETING 


1. Why did Peter leave Jerusalem? 

2. Where is Lydda, and what did Peter do there? Acts 
9 332-34. 

3. Why had Peter gone to Joppa? Acts 9:36-43. 

4. What is a centurion? Find other places in the New 
Testament where a centurion is mentioned. 

5. How far is it from Jerusalem to Joppa; from Joppa 
to Ceesarea? 


Topics FOR DIscUSSION OR REPORTS 


Foods Which the Jews Considered Unclean. 
The Vision of Peter. 

The Vision of Cornelius. 

Joppa of To-Day. 

Ceesarea. 

Peter’s Fourth Sermon. 


SPAS NE 


CHAP E REX OCVil 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
SAUL CONVERTED ON THE WAY TO DAMASCUS 
Acts 9:1-25; 26:1, 9-20 
Tor Memory VERSE 


“T was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision.”—Acts 
26 :19b. 


Tur Lesson Story 


When you studied about the stoning of Stephen, the first 
Christian martyr, you read in the Bible: “ And the witnesses 
laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named 
Saul. . . . And Saul was consenting unto his death.” Acts 
7:58b; 8:1. For the next few lessons we are going to study 
about Saul and his wonderful history. 

Saul was born in Tarsus in Cilicia a few years later than 
Christ was born in Bethlehem. Cilicia was a part of Asia 
Minor, where there were some Jews, but where the most of 
the people were Gentiles. They spoke Greek ; they worshiped 
Jupiter and Juno and Mercury, and the other gods of the 
Greeks and Romans. Saul’s father was a Roman citizen. 
He was also a strict Pharisee; he kept the law of Moses very 
strictly, in spite of being in a foreign country; he taught his 
son carefully and well. 

“Don’t follow the example of these heathen boys, my 
son,” he must have said. ‘‘ They are followers of false 
gods. Remember the words of our God in the table of the 
law, ‘ Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.’ ” 

Saul was a brilliant student; he learned well the lessons 
which his father set for him; he learned, too, many things 
about the Gentile people among whom his family lived— 
their language, their ways of living, their ways of doing 
things. He even had a second Gentile name—Paul. But 
always it seemed to him that the Jewish ways were better. 
Always he obeyed the law. 


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JUNIOR CHURCDE SCHOOL LESSONS veo 


Then, when he was twelve or thirteen years old, he went 
to Jerusalem to enter the school of the great Jewish teacher, 
Gamaliel. There, more than ever, he showed what a brilliant 
young man he was, and among his own people he became 
more and more strict in keeping the rules of the Pharisees. 
Whatever Saul did he always did with all his might and 
main. He soon became a rabbi, or teacher. It is thought 
that Saul had left Jerusalem and returned to Tarsus at the 
time when Jesus was teaching and preaching, but that he 
went back to Jerusalem about the time of Jesus’ death. At 
any rate the Bible tells us he was present at the time of 
Stephen’s death. Perhaps he had heard Stephen preach 
among the Greeks. 

After the death of Stephen Saul began to persecute the 
followers of Christ. He thought that this was his duty as 
a true Jew. He did not believe that Jesus was really the 
Messiah. He drove from the city as many believers on 
Jesus as possible. Then he decided to go still farther. He 
heard that there were Christians in Damascus and he de- 
termined to go there,. though the distance was nearly one 
hundred and fifty miles—a journey of seven days at least. 
But the length of the journey did not hinder Saul from try- 
ing to carry out his purpose. He got letters from the high 
priest to the Jewish leaders in Damascus, and started on his 
way. 

Three times in the Bible the story of the wonderful thing 
which happened to Saul on that journey is told: Acts 9:1-25; 
22 :3-16; 26:2-20. He had gone the greater part of the way. 
He was getting near to Damascus—that wonderful old city 
which is considered one of the oldest cities in the world, and 
was one of the most beautiful. The sun was glaring in the 
sky, for it was noon. Suddenly a light greater than that of 
that hot Syrian sun shone from the heavens. Saul fell to 
the ground in terror. And then he heard a voice saying to 
him, “ Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” 

“ Who art thou, Lord?” he asked. 

And the voice answered, “I am Jesus whom thou per- 
secutest : but rise, and enter into the city, and it shall be told 
thee what thou must do.” 

Saul lay stunned for a moment. Then he rose slowly. 
The men who were with him did not understand what was 


224 JUNIOR ‘CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


going on, but they saw that a strange thing had happened to 
their leader. He had suddenly become blind, and they had 
to lead him by the hand. Saul entered the city a helpless 
blind man instead of a persecutor, as he had planned. His 
companions led him to his lodgings at the house of Judas in 
the street called Straight—an old street which can still be 
seen in Damascus. 

For three days Saul*was blind. He would not eat and he 
could not sleep, for he was thinking how wrong he had been 
in persecuting the followers of Jesus—how mistaken he had 
been, even though he had thought that he was doing right. . 
During that time God sent to him a vision of a man named 
Ananias, who should come to him and lay his hands upon 
him, and bring back his sight. 

In the meantime God had sent a vision also to Ananias, 
one of the followers of Christ who lived in Damascus. The 
vision commanded Ananias to go to the house of Judas, in 
the street called Straight, and to help Saul. 

Ananias knew about Saul. At first he was afraid. But 
God again commanded him to go, telling him that Saul was 
to be a great messenger to the Gentiles and to suffer many 
things for Jesus’ sake. Ananias at last obeyed. He found 
Saul. He called him “ Brother.” When he placed his hands 
on Saul, the blindness left him. He could see again! He 
was immediately baptized. And then he ate and drank and 
joined the company of the followers of Jesus. 

Saul, the persecutor of Jesus’ followers, had become Saul 
the preacher of Jesus. Everyone was startled and surprised. 
His Jewish friends were amazed and angry. They could 
not believe what they saw and heard. Finally they perse- 
cuted Saul so that it was no longer safe for him to stay in 
the city. He who had come to persecute was himself per- 
secuted. He had to flee for his life. The city gates were 
guarded, so that his friends let him down over the city wall 
in a basket. And so began the story of the greatest preacher 
of Christ that the world has ever known. 


HANDWORK 


Look at your picture of the street called Straight; see 
if you can make such a queer, covered way in the sand 


SNOSVNVG ‘LHDIVULS GA’TIVO LAXHULS AHL AO AOOU AHL 





JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 225 


table. Use bits of glass to make the roof over the street. 
There are queer shops along the way, and Turkish banners 
flying. The followers of Christ even in recent years have 
been persecuted in Damascus. 


NoteBook WorK 


Begin a new page of your notebook for the three lessons 
that you are to have about Saul. Make an outline of his 
life so far, by filling in the blanks in the following sentences 
and copying them in your notebook. 

Saul was born in in 
in ———-. His teacher was In religion he was 
a He took part in the stoning of He had 
a vision of Jesus when he was on the way from 








He was educated 




















to He was blind for ———— days. He stayed in 
the house of ———— in the street called God told a 
man named ———— to go to him, and restore his sight. 


Saul escaped from Damascus by being let down over the 
wall ina 





EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


As soon as Saul understood and believed that Jesus was 
the Christ whom the Jews had expected for so many years, 
he tried to do the things that he knew Christ wanted him 
to do. You know that Jesus wants you to do certain things, 
to act in a certain way. ‘Try this week to do as he would 
like to have you do. Do you know anyone who is blind, or 
who cannot see very well? Perhaps you can read to that 
person this week, or do an errand for him or for her. ‘Then 
you will be doing as Jesus wants you to do, just as Ananias 
of Damascus did when he went to Saul in his blindness. 


Mae Work 


Trace on the map in your geography book Saul’s journey 
from Jerusalem to Damascus. He probably crossed the 
Jordan at the ford of Bethany near Jericho, and traveled 
northward through Perea and Batanea. 


Memory Work 
Learn Acts 22 :6-10. 


226 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


SUNDAY SESSION — 
SAUL (PAUL) GOING TO [PREACH LE BeGO sigs 
Acts 11 :22-26; chapter 14 


Tur MEMory VERSE 


“T press on toward_the goal unto the prize of the high 
calling of God in Christ Jesus.”—Philippians 3:14. 


THe Lesson STORY 


“T must get some one to help me in the work here in 
Antioch. It is too much for one man to try to do.” Barna- 
bas the Christian must have said something like this one day 
in the year A.D. 44, for he alone was preaching the gospel 
of Christ to the people of Antioch, the third greatest city of 
the world in those days. 

Antioch was a wonderful city. It was so big and so. rich 
and so wicked! It was built on the River Orontes, and 
down this river to the sea all sorts of goods were carried to 
be traded for all sorts of luxuries, all sorts of wonderful 
jewels and marbles and silks. There was a beautiful grove 
near Antioch with beautiful buildings of marble—temples 
with most wonderful furnishings and hangings. But—and 
this was what troubled Barnabas—these temples were not 
used in the worship of the true God, but in the worship of 
Apollo, the heathen god of the sun, and the people of Antioch 
were light-minded and luxury-loving and wicked. But Bar- 
nabas felt that they needed the good tidings of Jesus. He 
knew that Jesus commanded his followers to teach and to 
preach to all nations, including the people of Antioch. He 
had preached and taught and had won followers—and the 
work was getting too big for him. He wanted a helper. 
And whom do you suppose he chose? Saul the persecutor, 
who had become Saul the follower of Christ! 

And Saul came to Antioch as Barnabas asked. ‘Together 
they preached and taught for a whole year, winning many 
people to a love of Christ and of the true God. 

At the end of the time the people of Antioch were ready 
to carry out Jesus’ command that they should help to spread 
the gospel, The Holy Spirit told them to send out their two 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 227 


leaders to help others, and so Saul and Barnabas were sent 
out on the first missionary journey, by the people of the 
Christian Church at Antioch. 

The story of their adventures is a story as thrilling as you 
can imagine, for they went among all sorts of strange, 
heathen people. First they went to the island of Cyprus, 
where Barnabas had lived once upon a time. ‘They went 
through the island from one end of it to another and con- 
verted the governor, Sergius. Paulus. Then they started 
again across “the sea, and came toa place called Perga. After 
they left Cyprus, Saul is always called by another name, 
Paul. This was his second, or Roman name. From there 
they journeyed to Antioch of Pisidia (find it on your map) 
where they preached and taught until they were driven out 
by Jewish enemies. Next they came to Iconium. Again 
they preached and taught; again they were driven out. At 
last they came toa strange, heathen district called Lycaonia, 
where there were two important cities, Derbe and Lystra. 

Lycaonia was a wild, mountainous country. The people 
worshiped Jupiter and Juno and Mercury and Apollo and 
the rest of the gods of the Greeks and the Romans. It 
seemed hard to preach and to teach in such a place, but the 
two Christians began their work in Lystra bravely. There 
were no synagogues there, so they preached in the market 
places, in the public squares, on the streets, wherever they 
could find anyone to listen to them. . 

Among their hearers one day was a cripple—a man who 
had never been able to walk since he was born. He was 
paying close attention to the preachers. Paul saw that he 
really believed. 

“ Stand upright on thy feet,” he said in a loud voice. 

The man obeyed. He jumped and leaped as the lame man 
whom Peter had healed at the Temple gate had done. He 
must have shouted with joy. The people who saw the 
miracle shouted, too. They thought that the gods had come 
down to them, that they were highly honored. They were 
talking in the queer language of Lycaonia, and Paul and 
Barnabas did not understand what they said. Because Bar- 
nabas was the bigger man, they called him “ Jupiter,” and 
they called Paul, who was smaller and quick in his motions, 
“Mercury,” the messenger god. 


228 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


News quickly spreads. Some one in the crowd ran to the 
priests of the temple of Jupiter, which was before the city. 

“The gods have come down to us like men,” he panted. 
“They have performed a wonderful miracle. They have 
cured the lame man so that he can walk and leap.” 

The priests believed that what he said was true. There 
was a story that long years before the gods had come to this 
country in the form of men, and that hardly anyone had 
known that they were gods. Only two old people had 
known and had received a blessing. Of course this was 
only a heathen story, but the priests believed it. They 
wouldn’t make any mistakes this time. 

Quickly they took the oxen which were ready for the 
temple sacrifices. They put garlands on them; they led 
them to the place where the crowd was still surging around 
the apostles. 

It was not until then that Paul and Barnabas understood 
what was happening. They could not make themselves un- 
derstood, but they jumped out among the crowd, tearing 
their garments as a sign that they were displeased. ‘They 
spoke in Greek. They declared that they were not gods, but 
only men. The true God was the God whom they should 
worship—the God who had made heaven and earth and the 
sea, who sent the change of seasons, who sent them food. 
But even then it was hard to prevent the people from wor- 
shiping the missionaries. ‘They still thought that they were 
gods. 

But in a very short time there was a change. Jews from 
Iconium came to Lystra. They stirred up the people to 
anger, and Paul, who a short time before had had trouble 
to prevent the people from worshiping him, was now stoned 
so violently that they dragged him out of the city, supposing 
that he was dead. 

But God had further work for his disciples to do. While 
his followers stood around Paul, he recovered consciousness. 
He rose. They went quietly back into the city, and after 
resting overnight, they went on the next morning to 
Derbe. 

This was the most distant place that Paul and Barnabas 
reached on that first missionary journey. From Derbe they 
went back, visiting again the places where they had preached 


JUNTOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS Bey 


and taught before, showing those who believed in Jesus more 
about the way in which they should live. 

At last they got back to Antioch in Syria, the church 
which had sent them out, after an absence of about two 
years. What rejoicing there was over the account of their 
journey we can guess. The message of Jesus was spreading 
to a bigger circle of believers each year. It should go on and 
on and on. 


PutTtiInc THE Lksson INtTo THE LIFE oF THE CLASS 


1. The church at Antioch stood back of the missionaries, 
Paul and Barnabas. ‘They sent them out with their bless- 
ings and good wishes. ‘They prayed for them while they 
were gone. Those of us who are not ourselves missionaries 
can help the men and women who go, by prayer, by our 
offerings, by our interest. Are you doing any of these 
things? 

2. Do you know a missionary in a foreign land? Does 
your church help to support a missionary? Has he any 
children about your age? If he has, write a letter to the boy 
or the girl, and tell about your work and play in America. 
If he has not, write to the missionary himself. 

3. Sometimes you misunderstand Maria and Angelo in 
your school because they are foreigners. Sometimes they 
misunderstand you, just as the people of Lystra, and Paul 
and Barnabas misunderstood one another. Try to make 
them know that you are interested in them and want to help 
them. Don’t let them think that you are unkind because 
they misunderstand. 


Turk LEssoN TRUTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of True Understanding. Jesus said, “If ye 
know these things, blessed are ye if ye do them.” We 
know well that we should be honorable and kind and 
obedient and loving. ‘Therefore: 

We will try to show that we truly know and understand 
God’s will, by being honorable and kind and obedient and 
loving. 


230 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


A Story To READ IN CONNECTION wiItH THIs LESSON 


There was an old story told among the people of Lycaonia, 
the region where Paul healed the lame man of Lystra. 
Jupiter, the king of the gods, and Mercurius, or Mercury, 
his messenger, came down to the country in which Lycaonia 
was, disguised as man. All the people in the district were 
unkind to them except one old man, Philemon and his wife, 
Baucis. The gods were enraged, and sent a flood which 
destroyed all the people except this old couple, who were 
saved. 

For many, many years this story had been told among the 
people of Lycaonia. Of course it was untrue, but they be- 
lieved it. So, do you wonder that, when Paul cured the lame 
man, and they thought that he was a god, they hurried to 
do him honor? They did not want to make the same mistake 
a second time. You can find more about this story in “ The 
Miraculous Pitcher,” in Hawthorne’s “ Wonder Book.” 
Perhaps you have read it in day school. If not, ask your 
teacher to read it to you. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
GIVING CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE 
Colossians 1:16, 17 
THE CLASS PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we know that we owe to thee all 
the good things that we enjoy in life. Thou hast sent to us 
all the good things of which Paul spoke in his sermon to the 
people of Lystra—the seasons and the rain and the sun and 
the fruits of the earth—so many good things that we cannot 
name them all. We thank thee for thy goodness and loving- 
kindness to us and to all men, and we want to give to thee 
the praise that we ought to give. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Philippians 4:13; 2:13; Acts 9:34; 4:12-21; Habbakkuk 
Se LOviPsalmi2/ lew amessinl/. 


PUNTORACHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 231 


HYMNS For USE IN THE MEETING 


“For the Beauty of the Farth.” 

“ We Thank Thee, O Our Father.” 

“Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow.” 
“All Things Bright and Beautiful.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Who was Saul? 
Tell what you can about his early life. 
Who was Ananias? 
Where did Saul stay in Damascus? 
Ananias laid his hands on Saul, and Saul was able to 
see. Did Ananias take the credit for the cure? 
6. Who was Barnabas? 
7. Where was Antioch in Syria? Locate it on the map. 
What two great things happened first in Antioch? 
8. ‘Trace the first missionary journey on the map. 
9. Why was Saul’s name changed to Paul? 
10. What miracle did Paul perform in Lystra? 
11. Did Paul take the credit for this miracle himself ? 
12. Do you ever take credit for yourself which does not 
really belong to you? 


in iieat Nae 


Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. The Three Accounts of Paul’s Conversion. Acts, 
chapters 9, 22, 20. 

2. Why the Followers of Christ Were Called Christians 
in Antioch. 

3. Why Saul’s Name Was Changed to Paul in Acts 13:13. 

4. Compare the Miracle of Peter and the Lame Man at 
the Temple, and the Miracle of Paul and the Lame Man at 
Lystra. . 

5. ‘The Story of Baucis and Philemon. 

6. How the People of Lystra Treated Foreigners Who 
Did Not Understand. 

7. How We Should Treat Foreigners in Our School Who 
Do Not Understand. 

8. To the Foreigner Acts Often Speak Louder Than 
Words. 


CHAPTER XXVII 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
PAUL AND THE JAILER 
Acts 16:9-40; I Thessalonians 2 :2 


Tor MEmMory VERSE 


“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall 
tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or naked- 
ness, or peril, or sword? ... Nay, in all these things we 
are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”— 


ROMA sc On O7e 


THE LESSON STORY 


Paul did not think that he had done enough for Jesus when 
he had suffered the dangers and trials of the First Mis- 
sionary Journey. Very soon he was planning < second ex- 
pedition. This time he took with him instead of Barnabas a 
man named Silas, who was a Roman citizen as Paul himself 
was, and who proved a very good helper. 

Paul and Silas set out from Antioch on this second jour- 
ney. But instead of going in the direction in which Paul 
and Barnabas had gone on the first journey, they went over- 
land through Syria and Cilicia until they came to Derbe and 
Lystra. (Look up these places on your map, and mark the 
route that they may have taken.) 

At Lystra they found a Christian young man, Timothy, 
whom they took with them on the rest of the journey, as 
their helper. They went through the cities where they had 
preached before, over mountain roads and through strange 
cities, helping the new churches by their teaching and ex- 
ample. At last they came to the city of Troas in Asia Minor. 

The name “ Troas” reminds you, perhaps, of something 
that you have read in day-school history—the legendary city 
of Troy, which the Greeks besieged for so many years, for 
whose possession the great legendary heroes, Hector and 


232 


WENLORICHORCH SCHOOL LESSONS paahs) 


Achilles and Agammemnon and Ulysses fought and strug- 
gled. ‘Troas and Troy are not very far apart, but at Troas 
something happened which was far more important for us 
American Christians than anything that happened in ‘Troy. 

Unless you are Japanese or Chinese or Indian, your 
father or your grandfather or your great-grandfather prob- 
ably came from England or from France or from Italy, or 
from some part of Europe. Europe is a Christian conti- 
nent. Most of the people know about the true God and 
about Jesus Christ. ‘They no longer worship Jupiter and 
Mercury in Italy and Greece, and Odin and Thor in the 
North, as they did in the days of Paul. And it was some- 
thing that happened at Troas that was the first step in bring- 
ing about this change. 

The Holy Spirit had led the missionary party to Troas. 
And while they were waiting there to learn what to do, a 
vision came to Paul in the night. It was a man dressed in 
strange clothes. He seemed to hold out his hands to Paul 
and to say, ‘“ Come over into Macedonia, and help us.” And 
Macedonia was in Europe! God was leading the mission- 
aries to go still farther and to spread the gospel to Europe, 
where it had not been taken before. 

The Ethiopian had carried the gospel to Africa. The good 
tidings had been told in Asia Minor. And now it was to be 
carried into Kurope. It was to be carried, remember, to the 
uttermost parts of the earth. 

Paul and his party obeyed the vision. They took a little 
vessel and sailed from Troas to Samothrace and to Neapolis. 
From there they went to Philippi, the first city of Macedonia, 
and a Roman colony. (Find these places on the map.) 

Things must have seemed strange to the missionaries. 
They were in a strange land, among strange people. They 
could not find a synagogue of the Jews in all the city. Soon 
the Sabbath they went down to the river, where there was a 
place of prayer. There they found a little party of women 
who worshiped the true God. Among them was Lydia, a 
rich dealer in purple dyes from the city of Thyatira. The 
missionaries preached to this little group, and the very first 
believer in Jesus in Europe was Lydia, the woman of 
Philippi! She and the members of her family were bap- 
tized. She insisted that the missionaries should come to her 


234 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


house and stay. She immediately began to prove that she 
was really a Christian, for hospitality is a Christian virtue. 

But still more adventures were to come to Paul and Silas 
in Philippi. Their work was to be extended among the 
Gentiles in a wonderful way. 

There was in Philippi a poor, ignorant slave girl who 
seems to have been insane, or suffering from some such 
malady. People in those days thought that those who were 
-insane spoke their crazy words because some of their gods 
told them what to say. They did not realize that insane 
people were ill. This girl belonged to men who made a 
great deal of money from her meaningless ravings, which 
the people thought were messages from their gods. For 
several days she followed Paul and Silas through the streets. 
In some way she knew that they were followers of the true 
God and she called after them again and again, “ These men 
are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim unto you 
the way of salvation.” 

Paul was troubled. He knew that she was insane. One 
day he spoke to the evil spirit in her, “I charge thee in 
the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her,” he said. The 
spirit obeyed, and from that moment the girl was cured. 

You would have thought that everyone would have been 
happy over such a wonderful cure, would you not? But 
just the opposite thing happened. Her masters saw that 
they could no longer make any money from her ravings. 
They were very angry. They seized the missionaries and 
dragged them to the magistrates. They accused them falsely 
of making a disturbance in the city. The magistrates lis- 
tened to the accusation. ‘They had the clothes of the dis- 
ciples taken off. ‘They had them beaten and put in prison, 
with their feet fastened in the stocks. There they remained 
all night. 

The prisons of those days were very uncomfortable places, 
often damp and dark, without windows to give fresh air. 
You can see what the stocks were like by looking at your 
picture. The feet of the prisoner and sometimes his head 
and his hands were held in a very uncomfortable position. 

But the missionaries were cheerful in spite of their suffer- 
ings. They prayed and sang hymns during the night. ‘The 
other prisoners listened. Perhaps some of them may have 


TUN TORBCELUR CG ps CHOOL LESSONS Zo 


learned about Jesus from these prayers and hymns. About 
midnight something happened. Suddenly there was a great 
earthquake. The very foundations of the prison were 
shaken. The doors were shaken open. ‘The prisoners’ chains 
Tellioit. 

The jailer, wakened suddenly from sleep, thought that his 
prisoners had escaped. He knew that if this had happened 
he would be severely punished, and he was about to kill 
himself. 

But Paul interfered. ‘“ Don’t do any harm to yourself,” 


seth tt 
a Hil a 
ij 















































Hercmec@outs) senate allthere, | Weare not trying to 
escape.” 

The jailer was startled. He called for a light ; he came into 
the inner prison where Paul and Silas were, and fell down 
at their feet. He thought that the earthquake had come on 
account of their imprisonment. He knew that there was 
something strange about these two men. 

“What shall I do to be saved?” he asked, for he knew 
that he needed help in some way. 

“ Believe on the Lord Jesus,” the missionaries answered, 
“and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house.” 

Then and there they told the jailer and his family and his 


236 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


servants and all the other prisoners about Jesus. And the 
jailer believed their words. He took them from the inner 
prison. He washed the wounds made when they were 
beaten. He and his family were baptized, and then they 
joyfully hurried to prepare food for Paul and Silas. They 
all rejoiced greatly. ‘They had learned about Jesus and the 
good tidings of great joy. 

When the morning came, the magistrates wanted to send 
the missionaries quietly from the city. Paul said that they 
were Roman citizens. They had been beaten and punished 
unfairly. But when the magistrates urged them, they quietly 
went back to the house of Lydia, and the next day left 
Philippi, to continue their work in Europe. They had be- 
gun to teach and to preach in Philippi. Now they must go 
on and spread the news of Jesus farther and farther. 


HANDWORK 


See if you cannot make a model of the stocks such as that 
shown in your picture. ‘Take a piece of thin wood or card- 
board, and cut out the holes. Perhaps you can find a picture 
of another kind of stocks in your American history. Get a 
small doll, to use as a model, and show how Paul and Silas 
were fastened in the stocks. 


NoteBook WorK 


Give a short account of the events of this lesson in your 
notebook story of Paul. 


Mar Work 


Trace on your map the journey of the missionaries from 
Antioch in Syria to Philippi. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


When the wicked, heathen jailer became a Christian, his 
first act was to bathe the wounds of the missionaries and to 
give them food. Can you do anything of the same sort this 
week? Look for a chance to help some one. If one of your 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 237 


friends falls from his wheel and hurts himself, see what 
you can do to help. Sometimes boys and girls are unkind 
and laugh at those who are in trouble. A Christian always 
tries to be kind, and does not make fun of those who need 
help. : 


Mrmory WorxK 


Learn the words of Paul to the jailer: “ Believe on the 
Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved.” Acts 16:31. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
Wiha eh ibn > BE iC AN IO) 
Luke 4:16-21 
Tur Memory VERSE 


“ The Son of man came to seek and to save that which was 
lost.”’—Luke 19:10. 


Tue Lesson StTorRY 


Paul the persecutor became Paul the missionary. The 
cruel jailer of Philippi became the helpful friend of the 
missionaries whom a few hours before he had treated un- 
kindly. And the cause of the change in both of these men 
was just the same. Both of them had come to know Jesus 
Christ and his love for the people of the world. Both of 
them began immediately to follow his example of showing 
mercy and kindness and helpfulness to others. 

There have been many, many times in the history of the 
world when the love of Jesus has brought about results like 
these. A little more than a hundred years ago there was a 
very cruel chief called Afrikaner, who lived in heathen 
Africa. He had settled, with his men, in the region called 
Namaqualand, just north of the Orange River, on the western 
coast of Africa. (See if you can find the country on the 
map of Africa in your day-school geography.) Afrikaner 
was so cruel that he was hated and feared by everyone. He 


238 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


and his men would rush out from the wild region in which 
they lived, and attack the peaceful farms and villages. They 
would kill anyone who fought against them, and would carry 
off sheep and cattle and slaves. Again and again this hap- 
pened till the name of this cruel chief came to be hated 
through all the land, and finally the Government offered a 
large sum of money for the capture of this heathen outlaw. 

About this time a young missionary began work in that 
part of Africa. He was an Englishman, named Robert 
Moffat. He heard of Afrikaner. He made up his mind to 
preach to him and his men. He sent a message to the great 
chief, asking permission to do so. 

In some way God touched the heart of this African chief. 
He had heard something of the gospel of Jesus before this. 
He wanted to know more. He sent word that he would 
listen to the missionary. So, when Moffat arrived at the 
camp he was favorably received. The chief greeted him by 
saying that Moffat was young, and that he hoped he would 
remain a long time among them. Then suddenly he ordered 
a number of women to come. Soon they arrived with 
bundles of mats and long sticks like fishing rods. For a few 
moments the missionary did not know what was going to 
happen. ‘Then the chief gave an order to the women: 
“There, you must build a house for the missionary.” The 
women obeyed, and in a little more than a half hour a house 
such as the natives lived in had been built and was all ready 
for the missionary to live in. 

So began Moffat’s experience with this man who was sup- 
posed to be so cruel and so terrible. The story of Jesus 
seemed to reach his heart almost at once. He never failed 
to attend a service; he heard the Bible read regularly. He 
became truly a follower of the Lord. “He who was for- 
merly like a firebrand, spreading discord, enmity, and war 
among the neighboring tribes, would now make any sacrifice 
to prevent anything like a collision between the two contend- 
ing parties, and when he might have raised his arm and 
dared them to lift a spear, or draw a bow, he would stand 
in the attitude of a suppliant and entreat them to be recon- 
ciled to each other, and, pointing to his past life, ask, ‘ What 
have I now of all the battles I have fought, and all the cattle 
I took, but shame and remorse?’ ” 


TUNTOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS Zou 


Two years went by. Robert Moffat planned to go to Cape 
Town. He asked Afrikaner to go with him. The chief was 
troubled. “I thought that you loved me,” he said to the 
missionary. ‘“‘ But if I go to Cape Town I shall be pun- 
ished.” Mr. Moffat persuaded him that his influence would 
prevent punishment—that Afrikaner would be perfectly safe 
with him. At last he went, though he disguised himself. 

On the journey they stopped at a farmhouse for water. 
“Who are you?” the farmer asked the missionary. 

“ Robert Moffat,” was the answer. 

“Robert Moffat? Robert Moffat?” whispered the farmer. 
“You can’t be Robert Moffat ; you must be his ghost, for he 
was killed by Afrikaner.” 

* No, no,” Moffat:assured him. ‘“ Afrikaner did not want 
to murder me. He is now a good man.” 

The farmer would not believe this. “I will believe any- 
thing you tell me,” he said, “but not this. That would be 
too great a wonder. If.what you say is true, I have only 
one wish, and that is to see him before I die. As sure as 
the sun shines, I will go with you to see him, when you come 
back again.” 

All the time Afrikaner was sitting on the ground near by, 
with the rest of Moffat’s party. At this moment the mis- 
sionary motioned to him and said, “Here is Afrikaner.” 
The chief rose and made a polite bow, saying, “ I am he.” 

The farmer could hardly be convinced, but at last he did 
believe and he raised his eyes in thankfulness to heaven with 
a prayer, “O God, what a miracle of thy power,” he ex- 
claimed. “ What cannot thy grace accomplish! ” 

Once more the gospel of Jesus had accomplished its work. 
Once more a bad man had been made into a good man by 
God’s grace, through the work of his missionaries. 


Purtine THE LEsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. The knowledge of Jesus and his love for the world 
made great changes in the lives of Paul and of the jailer of 
Philippi and of Afrikaner. You know a great deal more 
about Jesus than the jailer and the heathen chief knew. 
What change has that knowledge made in your life? Are 
you more kind and more gentle, more truthful and more re- 


240 JUNIOR CHURCHYSCHOOL LESSON: 


liable than you were a year ago? Is Jesus making you a 
better Junior every day? 

2. Lydia was hospitable to the missionaries. So was 
Afrikaner. Are you hospitable? How do you treat 
strangers in your school? If new girls or boys come into 
the class, do you invite them to play with you? Do you try 
to keep them from feeling strange? 

There was once a boy whose father was a missionary in 
Japan. Sometimes missionaries come back to America to 
rest and visit. This boy had never been in America. When 
he was twelve years old his father and mother and he came 
home for a year, and he went to school. How wonderful 
he thought it was going to be to play and study with all 
those American boys and girls instead of with Japanese chil- 
dren! But at first everything did seem strange. No one paid 
much attention to him, for there were a hundred children in 
the class, and in those first days even the teacher hardly. 
knew them apart. He was too shy to talk. 

Then one day the teacher called him to the desk and asked 
him some questions. He told her that the last school he went 
to was in Japan and she asked him some more questions. 
And it wasn’t very long after that before he wasn’t a bit 
strange any more. For the next day something was said in 
talking about the day’s news about Japan. 

“James can tell us more about that than we know,” 
teacher said, “ for he has lived there all his life.” Then she 
asked him to tell the class some of the queer things about 
Japan that he knew and that they didn’t know. 

And at recess that day it seemed to James that everyone 
in the class crowded around him to hear more about Japan, 
and they all wanted to show him how they played ball, and 
how they prepared their lessons, and even how they tied 
their neckties. He forgot to be homesick and he forgot to be 
lonely, for they were all his friends before he knew it! 


Tur Lesson TrutH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Christian Kindness. The knowledge of 
Jesus and love of him make people kind and loving and 
gentle. Therefore: 

I will try to be kind and loving and gentle to others. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 241 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
SOME WAYS IN WHICH WE MAY HELP OTHERS 
Luke 6:27-31 
THE CLAss PRAYER 


O Jesus, we want to follow the example which thou hast 
set before us, of kindness and service to all. Open our eyes 
so that we may see our opportunities to help others. Make 
us glad and willing to help them even when it means some 
trouble for us ourselves. We know that thou camest to the 
world not to be ministered unto, but to minister. Help us 
to be like thee. We ask in thy name. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Acts 28:28;°3:19: Matthew 18:3; I Peter 3:8, 10-12; 
Colossians 3:20; Ephesians 6:1-3; I Peter 2:17. 


HyMNs For USE IN THE MEETING 


“What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” 

“The Whole World Is Lost in the Darkness of Sin.” 
“ T’ll Go Where You Want Me to Go.” 

“Tf You’ve Heard the Wondrous Story.” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Where was Christianity first preached in Kurope? 
2. Who was the first Christian convert in Europe? 
3. What was the first sign of being a Christian that she 
_ showed? 
4. Name another Christian convert in Philippi. 
5. What was his first act as a Christian ? 
6. Name a heathen chief who became a Christian in 
Pet tica. 
7. Did he show any of the same Christian traits that 
Lydia and the jailer had shown? 
8. How can you be hospitable ? 
9. How can you be kind to strangers? 
10. How can you help to tell others of Christ? 


242 


= 


ee ee 


= 
© 


JUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOESEESSONS 


‘Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


How a Junior Can Be Hospitable. 

Lydia, the First Christian Convert in Europe. 

The Roman Empire in Paul’s Day. 

Greece in Paul’s Day. 

Missions in Africa ‘To-Day. 

Three Men Whose Lives Were Changed by the Gospel. 
Changes Which FoHowing Christ Can Make in My 


CHAPTER XXVIII 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
PAUL’S SHIPWRECK 

Acts, chapter 27 


Tur MEmMory VERSE 
Acts 27 :25. 





“Be of good cheer.” 


Tues Lesson Story 


Paul, the missionary, went from Philippi to other parts of 
Greece, teaching and. preaching and telling the people of the 
good tidings of the gospel. At last he returned to Antioch 
to report, just as missionaries of to-day return to their home 
churches to report. He made a third journey, revisiting 
many of the churches which he had founded, and telling 
them more about Jesus. At the conclusion of this journey 
he went to Jerusalem. 

Paul had been in the great city of the Jews since he had 
been a Christian, but his visits had been short and more or 
less secret. This time his presence was known. The Jews 
of Jerusalem hated him even more than the Jews of Asia 
Minor had hated him. They accused him of breaking their 
law, and of making a disturbance. He was arrested and 
taken before the sanhedrin and the Roman judges as seaiee 
had been and as Stephen had been. 

But Paul had one advantage which neither Jesus nor 
Stephen had had. You remember, do you not, that he was 
a Roman citizen, even though he was a Jew. He had the 
rights of a Roman; when he thought he was being unfairly 
treated in Palestine he appealed to Czesar, and the Roman 
law required that he should be taken to Rome for trial, so 
he was not given over to the Jewish sanhedrin for punish- 
ment. He was sent to Rome. 

There were other prisoners going to Rome, too, and they 
were put in charge of a centurion, or captain of a hundred 


243 


244 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


men, named Julius. One day in A.p. 60 the party embarked 
from Czesarea in a small sailing vessel, which was going to 
coast along the shores of Asia Minor, touching at various 
places along the shore. 

The ship would have seemed very strange to us nowadays. 
It was little, even in comparison with our lake steamers, and 
would have seemed very, very small in comparison with the 
great ocean liners. It-did not move by steam, but had one 





or two great, square sails, probably painted red. These sails 
were used when the wind was favorable. Otherwise the 
boat was rowed by men, who were slaves chained to their 
places. The Romans had boats with two tiers of rowers, 
which were called ‘‘ biremes”’; boats with three tiers of 
rowers were called “triremes.” The prow of the ship was 
usually carved with a head—often the head of one of the 
heathen gods, or of a bird or of an animal. We should be 
almost afraid to trust our lives in such a vessel, but our 
ancestors were daring. ‘They ventured far out to sea in 


PON TORSCHIURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 245 


these tiny ships; they even crossed the ocean and explored 
strange lands in them. 

Julius, the centurion, was kind to Paul. The second day 
of the journey, when they came to Sidon, he allowed Paul 
to go ashore and visit friends. Then, because the winds 
were not favorable, they crept along the shores of Cyprus 
and went past Cilicia, where Paul had been born, and 
Pamphylia, until they came to Myra, a city of Lycia. 

Here they found a larger ship, whose home port was 
Alexandria, in Egypt. It was carrying grain to Italy. The 
centurion determined to take his party in this ship, which 
was much larger than the first ship—so big, in fact, that it 
held two hundred and seventy-six persons. This ship sailed 
slowly, and at last came to Crete. With difficulty they 
reached the port of Fair Havens. 

The journey had taken so long that it was late in the fall 
when the ship reached Crete. Paul had traveled much. He 
knew that it would be dangerous to go farther, and he urged 
the centurion to remain where they were for the winter. 
But Julius thought that the captain of the ship knew more 
about such things than Paul did. The harbor of Fair Havens 
-was not very good and the captain thought that they could 
safely reach a better place to winter, Phoenix, on the south- 
western shore of Crete. So, one day, when the wind blew 
softly from the south, they weighed anchor and set sail. At 
first they hugged the shore. Then suddenly a terrific gale 
from the northeast began to blow. The ship could not hold 
its course. It was driven before the wind as if it had been 
a chip of wood. ‘They came close to a small island named 
Cauda. There they found that they were in danger of losing 
the small boat, which we would call a “lifeboat.” They 
hoisted this on board. They strengthened the ship in every 
way possible. Still the tempest blew. Still they were driven 
forward, they didn’t know where. 

The next morning they threw overboard the freight, in 
order to make the ship ride more lightly. The third morn- 
ing they, cast out the tackling. Day after day the storm 
raged. ‘There was no moon, no stars, no sun for day after 
day. ‘They didn’t know where they were. They were too 
distressed to eat. 

In the midst of all their trouble there was one man who 


246 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


remained calm. Paul prayed. He asked God’s help and it 
was given to him. He spoke to the men and told them to be 
of good cheer, for God had sent his messenger to tell him 
that they should all be saved, and that only the ship should 
be lost. 

For fourteen days and fourteen nights the little boat 
pitched and tossed on the stormy Adriatic Sea. Then the 
sailors found that they were approaching shore. They 
sounded—that is, dropped a piece of lead into the water— 
and found that it was twenty fathoms, or one hundred and 
twenty feet deep. A little later they sounded again, and 
found that it was not quite so deep—only fifteen fathoms, 
this time. Then they were certain that they were nearing 
land. They dropped four anchors at the stern of the ship, 
and prayed for day. 

The sailors were almost mad with terror. You know how 
sailors nowadays stick to their ships. “ Don’t give up the 
ship” is their motto as long as there is any hope at all. But 
these men were untrue to their calling. They planned to 
steal the little boat and desert the big ship. Paul discovered 
what they were about to do. He told the soldiers. They 
cut the ropes and set the little boat adrift, so that the sailors 
had to stay on board. 

Then Paul spoke again to the men. “ We have been 
drifting for fourteen days,” he said, “and in all that time 
you have eaten very little. If you take food, it will be bet- 
ter for you. You will be stronger. God has told me that 
none of you shall die.” 

They saw that his advice was good, and they took food 
and did feel stronger and better. They lightened the ship 
still further by throwing over the grain with which it was 
loaded. 

By this time morning had come. They could see that they 
were near shore, though they did not know what the land 
was. ‘There was a kind of bay with a beach. They decided 
to drive the boat on to the beach, and take their chance. The 
vessel went aground. The forepart was fixed in a sand bar. 
The stern began to break up. 

When the soldiers saw the danger, they wanted to kill 
their prisoners, for they knew that this was the Roman law. 
But the centurion loved Paul. For his sake he ordered that 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 247 


all be given a chance for their lives. And so the men—crew 
and guard and prisoners—threw themselves overboard. 
They caught hold of bits of wreckage. They swam as well 
as they were able to do. And so it came to pass that they 
all reached land safely. Every one of the two hundred and 
seventy-six people who had been on board the ill-fated ship 
was saved as God had told Paul that they should be. God 
had cared for his missionary and for those who were with 
him. Their lives were saved. 


HANDWORK 


See if you can make from cardboard or from wood a boat 
something like that in your picture. Make a large, square 
sail, and paint it red. See if you can cut out a figurehead 
from a thin piece of wood. Paint a large eye on the prow. 
This was often done in ancient ships. 


NotEBooK Work 
Enter this lesson in your notebook account of Paul, 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Paul tried to cheer his companions in a time of trouble. 
If you meet anyone who is “ blue” or anxious this week, try 
to do something to comfort him. And try, too, to be cheer- 
ful yourself. 


Map Work 


Draw a map of the Mediterranean Sea on a large sheet 
of paper. Then mark with a dotted line the route which 
was taken by the party in which Paul was traveling. They 
started from Czsarea and were shipwrecked on the island of 
Melita, or Malta. You will find out more about this island 
in your next Sunday’s lesson, on page 249. 


Memory Work 
A POEM THAT TELLS SOME THINGS WHICH A JUNIOR CAN DO 


He can play a straight game all through: 
That’s one good thing he can do. 

He can fight like a knight 

For the Truth and the Right— 
That’s another good thing he can do. 


248 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


He can shun all that’s mean, 
He can keep himself clean, 
Both without and within— 
That’s a very fine thing he can do. 


He can look to the Light, 
He can keep his thoughts white, 
He can fight the great fight, 
He can do with his might, 
What is good in God’s sight— 
Those are truly great things he can do. 


And—in each little thing 

He can follow the King 

Yes—in each smallest thing 

He can follow the King— 

He can follow the Christ, the King. 


—JOHN OXENHAM. 


THE DESCRIPTION OF AN ANCIENT SHIP BY AN 
ANCIENT WRITER 


An old Greek writer, Lucian, *who lived a.p. 120-200, 
describes a ship which was in the harbor near Athens in his 
day as follows: ; 

“What a size that ship was! One hundred and eighty 
feet long, the man said, and something over a quarter of 
that in width; and from deck to keel, the maximum depth, 
through the hold, forty-four feet. And then the height of 
the mast with its huge yard; and what a forestay it takes 
to hold it! And the lofty stern with its gradual curve, and 
its gilded beak, balanced at the other end by the long rising 
sweep of the prow, and the figures of her name goddess, 
Isis, on either side. As to the other ornamental details, the 
paintings and the scarlet topsail, | was more struck by the 
anchors, and the capstans and windlasses, and the stern 
cabins. The crew was like a small army. And they were 
saying that she carried as much corn as would feed every 
soul in Attica for a year. And all depends for its safety on 
one little old atomy of a man, who controls that great rudder 
with a mere broomstick of a tiller.’ 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL, LESSONS 249 


SUNDAY SESSION 
PAUL ON, THE ISLAND OF MELITA 
Acts 28:1-10 
MerMory VERSE 


“Hear the word of Jehovah, O ye nations, and declare it 
in the isles afar off.”—Jeremiah 31:10. 


THE Lesson Story 


“A ship has been wrecked down at the north shore of the 
island,” called one man to another, one winter day in the 
year 61. “Let us go down to the beach, to see what is 
happening.” 

It was the morning of the shipwreck of the vessel in 
which Paul and his friends had been traveling. ‘The place 
where the boat had gone ashore was, as they found out later, 
the island of Melita, or Malta, in the Mediterranean Sea. 
Its people were not savages, though the Bible calls them 
“barbarians.” ‘That word did not mean in Paul’s day what 
we mean by it, however. The Greeks and Romans used it 
about anyone who did not talk the same languages as they 
did. They said that the words of such people sounded just 
like “‘baa-baa,”’ and did not make sense, and they called 
these people “ barbarians.” 

The men of Melita hurried to the beach. They knew that 
the crew and passengers from the shipwrecked vessel would 
be wet and cold. They built a fire, and as each man reached 
shore they tried to help him all they could. They were 
kind and hospitable. 

Paul, as usual, was helping, too. He always forgot him- 
self and tried to do what he could for others. He went 
about picking up some of the sticks which lay on the beach 
to use as firev,ood. As he picked up some of this wood a 
viper, a poisonous snake, which lay among it, was roused 
by the heat. It fastened its fangs on the missionary’s hand, 
but he shook it off as if it had been nothing. 

The people of Melita looked at one another in horror. 
They knew that the snake was poisonous and they thought 
that Paul’s hand would immediately begin to swell, and that 


250 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


soon he would die. They were superstitious people. They 
felt that he must be a terrible criminal—a murderer, per- 
haps, who had escaped from the sea only to die in another 
way. They thought that the gods were punishing him for 
his sins, 

But Paul did not die. He did not suffer any harm at all 
from the bite of the snake. ‘The people, like the people of 
Lystra, thought that he-was a god. 

Of course Paul told them that he was not a god, as he had 
told the people of Lystra. He told them of the true God 
and of Jesus. But they were not like the people of Lystra. 
They did not turn against him. They took him to the home 
of the chief man of the island, Publius, and entertained him. 

And in the house of Publius, Paul was able once more to 
show a kindness. ‘The father of Publius was ill, and Paul 
was able to cure him, through power which God gave to him. 
When the people of Melita heard of this they brought many 
who were ill and Paul cured them all. The people were 
grateful for this kindness, and as long as the party stayed 
in Melita they were entertained and treated hospitably. 
When spring came, and the sea was again open for travel, 
they started once more on the way to Rome. And the people 
of Melita, thankful for all that Paul had done for them, gave 
them all the necessities which they had lost in the shipwreck 
and sent them off with gifts and good wishes. Once more 
God had taken care of his missionary. 


Tur EXPERIENCE OF A MopERN MISSIONARY 


Do you know where the South Sea Islands are, in the 
Southern Pacific Ocean? Suppose you look on the map in 
your day-school geography, and find the group called ‘“ The 
Society Islands,” because they were discovered by an as- 
tronomical expedition sent out by the Royal Society of 
England. One of the Society Islands is called ‘“‘ Raiatea ”; 
another is called “ Rurutu.” 

In the year 1817 John Williams, an English missionary, 
sent out by the London Missionary Society, landed on the 
island of Raiatea. He was not shipwrecked as Paul had 
been, on Melita, but he was received kindly by the people of 
Raiatea, as Paul had been received by the Melitans. They 
were hospitable and helpful. They helped him to build a 


FUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 251 


house for himself and his wife and baby, and when they saw 
how pleasant he made this house, they tried to make their 
own homes like it. Soon very many of them became Chris- 
tians and it was not very long before they built a church so 
large that a congregation of twenty-four hundred people 
might worship in it. The next thought of this congregation 
must have been like the thought of the church at Antioch, 
when it planned to send out the first foreign missionaries. 
They planned to obey Jesus’ command, and to help to spread 
his gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth. John Williams 
and another white missionary, with six native Christians and 
their wives, started out in a little vessel—a vessel even 
smaller than that in which Paul set out for Rome. They 
came to the group of islands called the Cook group, and 
landed on the island of Aitutaki. The natives already knew 
something of the gospel. As soon as they caught sight of 
Williams’ vessel, they rushed out to meet it and to greet him 
with shouts of joy, because God’s Word was to be taught 
tothem. They listened to him with joy and faith. They had 
already destroyed some of their wooden idols. Now they 
gave to Williams those which had been left and when the 
missionary party sailed away, there were thirty-one idols 
hanging on the masts and the yardarms of their little vessel, 
to show the natives of the near-by islands that the people of 
Aitutaki no longer believed in idols, but had become fol- 
lowers of the true God! That was a very different way of 
using idols for decorations from the way in which they were 
used on Greek and Roman vessels, is it not? 

John Williams did a wonderful missionary work in the 
South Seas. It is said that he brought to Jesus, directly or 
indirectly, three hundred thousand people. And though he 
gave his life for these converts as Paul did for his converts, 
his work was well worth while, and there are few men who 
have so many souls to their credit. 


PuTTING THE LEsson INtTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


1. If you truly love God and his Son, Jesus, you will 
want to tell others about him. 

2. If you truly love Christ, you will show this in the way 
you live. Paul showed the people of Melita that he was a 
true follower of Christ. 


252 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS : 


3. Paul and John Williams were both brave, for Jesus’ 
sake. Are you a hero of the cross? Do you try to endure 
bravely the troubles which come to you? Missionaries are 
not always called on to be brave in big things. Sometimes 
they have to be brave in enduring little things. Remember, 
too, that they were able to endure great sufferings for two 
reasons. God gave them courage, but they themselves 
strengthened this courage by enduring bravely the little 
troubles of each day ; by doing small duties well and bravely. 
Prepare yourself for future big things by doing little things 
well. 


Tue Lesson TrutTH EXPRESSED IN A LAW 


The Law of Cheerful Helpfulness. Jesus wants us to 
help others. He wants us to be cheerful and happy as we 
help. God loves a “cheerful giver,” whether what we 
give is help or money. Therefore: 

I will give help in every way that I can and I will bea 
orcueet idlecivera 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
SERVING WITH JOY 
Psalm 100 
THE CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want to serve thee in joy and in 
gladness. We want to help those who are in sorrow and in 
trouble as Paul helped those who were with him on the ship, 
when it seemed that none of them could be saved. Help us 
to be always loving, always cheerful, always thoughtful of 
others, giving a joyful service for thy sake. We ask this in 
Jesus’ name. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 
Matthew 14:27; John 16:33; Acts 23:11; II Corinthians 
9:7; 12:15;;Proverbs 16:20 sIsatah 25;:9 ; Psalm 92 407s 
Galatians 5:13b, 14; Philippians 4:4; 2:17, 18. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS Lays 


HyMNS For Usk IN THE MFETING 


“The Son of God Goes Forth to War.” 

“ How Firm a Foundation.” 

“Up! Rouse You! Soldiers of the Cross.” 
“ Hark the Bugle Call of God.” 

“Forward! Singing Glory.” 


QUESTIONS For USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Some days you “ get out of the wrong side of the bed.” 
What is the first thing you ought to do when that happens? 

2. Paul was cheerful in the midst of danger. Why was 
he so sure of safety? Why was he able to help others? 

3. Afrikaner was afraid to goto Cape Town with Robert 
Moffat, but he remembered the promises of the Lord, and 
went. The promise was Psalm 37:5. What is this promise? 
Do you accept it as fully as the African chief did? 

4. How can you best “serve the Lord with gladness ” ? 

5. Are you cheerful when mother wants you to go on an 
errand for her, when you have planned to go skating? 

6. Are you cheerful when you have to stay at home to 
write a composition for school, instead of going out to play? 

7. Do you ever try to “ cheer up ” some one who is blue 
or discouraged? There is Italian Maria in your class who 
is discouraged because she has such a hard time in learning 
her lessons. Do you ever try to help her? 


Topics For Discussion or REPORTS 


Paul and the Shipwreck. 

Paul Among Strangers. 

Robert Moffat Among Strangers. 

John Williams Among Strangers. 

Strangers in My Own Land. 

How I Act to the Strangers I Meet. 

How I May Be Kind to Strangers and Show Them 
Better Ways. 


NAMA ONE 





FOLLOWERS OF JESUS AND THE HISTORY OF 
THE CHURCH 





CHAPTER XXX 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
POLYCARP OF SMYRNA 
Hebrews 11:1-10, 13-16 


THE MEMoRY VERSE 


“Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought right- 
eousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 
quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, 
from weakness were made strong.”—Hebrews 11:33, 34a. 


Tuk LEsson STorRY 


Do you remember that there is in the Bible one of the 
apostles who was called “the disciple whom Jesus loved’? 
This disciple was John, the son of Zebedee, one of the very 
first of those whom Jesus called to follow him at the Sea 
of Galilee. Mark 1:16-20. John was the disciple who sat 
closest to Jesus at the Last Supper. It was he who, with 
Peter, followed into the house of the high priest after Jesus’ 
arrest. It was he who ran with Peter to the tomb when it 
was first reported to the disciples that the body of Jesus was 
no longer here. It was he who was with Peter at the Beau- 
tiful Gate and in the prison at Jerusalem. 

John had- been a hot-tempered, impulsive man when he 
first became a follower of Jesus, but he learned many les- 
sons from his Master, and as he grew older, he became more 
and more kind and loving. He became the leader of the 
church at Ephesus in Asia Minor, which Paul had estab- 
lished, and later he was sent by the Roman Government as 
an exile to the island of Patmos in the Atgean Sea. There 
he lived to be an old, old man. He outlived all the other 
disciples of Jesus, and it is thought that he did not die until 
about the year 100. 

John was the writer of five books of the New Testament: 


Dot 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


ojo de 
e2?'P 


ero? 


VILV IVD 


e 





JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 259 


the Gospel of John, the First, Second, and Third Epistles 
of John, and Revelation, the last book of the Bible. In 
Revelation he writes to the different churches of Asia Minor, 
that part of Asia which is just north of Palestine, and con- 
nects Asia and Europe. In that region there were seven 
churches which he names. One of these churches was the 
church of Smyrna. Revelation 1:11; 2:8-11. 

The church in Smyrna was one of the earliest Christian 
churches. John did not find fault with it as he did with some 
of the other churches of Asia Minor. He told the members 
of this church that trials and tribulations were about to 
come to them, but he urged them to be faithful— Be thou 
faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life,” 
the Spirit had told him to write to them. 

Smyrna was a very ancient city. It is situated on the 
Atgean Sea, about fifteen miles from Ephesus where the 
apostle John was bishop, as the pastor of the church was 
called in those days. It is said to have been the birthplace 
of the Greek poet, Homer. Long before the days of Christ, 
Smyrna had been noted for its faithfulness. Cicero, the 
Roman writer of the first century before Christ, calls it the 
“city of our most faithful and most ancient allies.” “ Above 
everything else,” says one writer, “it prided itself upon its 
beauty and its faithfulness to all treaties. E;very traveler 
even yet is impressed with the sparkling beauty of the bay 
and the crown of buildings encircling the hill, which is the 
most prominent part of the view from the harbor. In 
ancient times this hill was encircled by a street so glorious 
that it was called ‘the Golden,’ and this street was lined by 
palaces and temples and crowned by the acropolis.” 

About sixty years after the death of John there was great 
excitement in Smyrna. There was an uprising against the 
Christians. The mob raged through the streets, destroying 
all the followers of Christ whom they could find. Particu- 
larly they were seeking for Polycarp, the bishop of the 
church in Smyrna. 

Polycarp was an old, old man. He was one of the few 
of those still living who had known the apostles. He had 
been taught by the apostle John. It is said that John had 
taught him to love Christ when he was only a boy, and this 
might have been so, for Smyrna is not very far from 


260 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Ephesus, where John taught for so many years. At any 
rate Polycarp knew John, and had heard his teachings of 
Christ. He believed in Christ with all his heart and soul and 
strength. 

During the disturbance against the Christians, Polycarp’s 
friends had persuaded him to hide in the house of a friend 
outside the city. ‘There he remained in safety for some days, 
but at last a servant betrayed him. His friends wanted him 
to try to escape, but he would not do so. “ The will of God 
be done,” he said. When he was taken prisoner he asked 
for an hour for prayer, and after that, started with the 
Roman officer back to Smyrna. 

At first Polycarp rode on an ass. Then the officer invited 
the old man to ride in his chariot with him. He tried to per- 
suade him to give up his faith in Jesus, and to worship the 
emperor, and the gods of the Romans. But Polycarp shook 
his head. He would not deny his Lord. The officer was so 
enraged that he threw the old man from the chariot. In the 
fall Polycarp was injured, but he followed the chariot into 
Smyrna, where he was taken before the governor. 

A great crowd gathered, as Polycarp was led into the city. 
He walked on, head held high, through the entrance of the 
great arena, the place in every Greek and Roman city where 
combats between men and beasts were held. And as the 
bishop entered the arena it seemed to him that amid the 
shouts and howls of the mob he heard an encouraging voice 
saying clearly to him, “ Be strong, and show thyself a man, 
O Polycarp.” It seemed to him that God himself had sent 
the message. 

He went forward to the place where the governor, or pro- 
consul, sat. He was not afraid. He had courage to endure 
whatever should come to him, for God was with him. He 
was true to the message that the apostle John had written 
to the péople of the church at Smyrna. He was ready to be 
faithful unto death. 


Map Work 


Draw an outline map of EKurope, to use in connection with 
the next four lessons. Be sure to draw very fully the coun- 
tries around the Mediterranean Sea and the northern line 
of Africa. Put in also Palestine and Asia Minor. Then, in 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 261 


connection with to-day’s lesson, mark Patmos, Ephesus, and 
Smyrna. 


NotTEBooK WorK 


Take a new blank book, such as you can get from the ten- 
cent store, to use in connection with the series of lessons 
that you are going to begin this week. On the first page, 
write the title, “ Following Jesus Day by Day.” Under this 
write, “The History of the Church.” On the second page 
write “ Polycarp of Smyrna,” and begin the story of his 
life. 


EXPpRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


The message of the apostle John was “ Love one another.” 
Polycarp’s message was “ Be faithful.” This week try to be 
loving to others and faithful in all your duties. Then you 
will be carrying out two of the lessons which the lives of the 
early followers of Jesus have taught to the world. 


Memory Work 
Learn this verse of the hymn “ Yield Not to Temptation ”’: 


“To him that o’ercometh 

God giveth a crown, 

Through faith we shall conquer, 
Though often cast down; 

He who is our Saviour, 
Our strength will renew, 

Look ever to Jesus, 
He'll carry you through.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
PAT Hn aN iO don ADE 
II Timothy 4:3-8 
Tur Memory VERSE 


“T have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, 
I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me 
the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but 


262 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


also to all them that have loved his appearing.’’—II Timothy 
4:7,8. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Polycarp the aged stood before the proconsul. Even the 
hard heart of the Roman governor was touched by the sight 
of the old man. Besides, it was his duty to try to make him 
give up his faith in Jesus. 

“Swear, and I will set thee at liberty,’ he said. ‘ Re- 
proach Christ.” 

But Polycarp still stood firm in spite of the shouts and 
cries of the multitude. “ Eighty and six years have I served 
him, and he never did me an injury,” he said. ‘“ How then, 
can I give up my Lord and Saviour?” 

“Swear, by the fortune of Cesar, and thou shalt be 
saved,” urged the proconsul. 

But Polycarp could not be moved. He was a true fol- 
lower of Christ. He truly loved Christ and believed in his 
promises. It seemed to him that he heard God’s voice say- 
ing, “Be strong, and show thyself a man, O Polycarp.” 
He spoke out boldly once more to the proconsul, “ Hear me 
declare with all boldness I am a Christian.” 

“T will throw thee to the wild beasts,” threatened the 
governor. 

“Call them, then,” answered Polycarp, “ for we are not 
accustomed to repent what is good in order to adopt that 
which is evil!” 

“T will cause thee to be consumed by fire, seeing thou 
despisest the wild beasts, if thou wilt not repent,” raged the 
proconsul. 

Still Polycarp was firm. “Thou threatenest me with fire 
which burneth for an hour and after a little is extinguished,” 
he said, “ but art ignorant of the fire of consuming judgment 
and of eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly. But 
why tarriest thou? Bring forth what thou wilt.” 

The proconsul delayed no longer. He knew that the 
angry multitude was waiting for his decision. He called 
the herald. He gave an order. The people in the crowd 
grew quiet. They wanted to hear every word that the 
herald said. And then the murmur began again. Quickly 
it turned to a cry, which spread through all the crowd. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 263 


“ Polycarp has confessed that he is a Christian! Polycarp 
has confessed that he is a Christian! Let him be given to 
the lions! Away with him! Away with him!” But it was 
too late for this to be done. The shows of wild beasts were 
over.» The proconsul decided to burn Polycarp at the stake. 
They set up the post. The angry crowd rushed out into the 
baths and the shops along the streets, and tore down the 
wooden furnishings. ‘They piled these things around him. 
They were about to nail him to the stake, so that he could 
not struggle away, but he objected. “ Leave me as I am,” 
he said, “ for he that giveth me strength to endure the fire, 
will also enable me, without securing me by nails, to remain 
without moving in the pile.’ Then once more he prayed. 
Even then his prayer was a prayer of thanksgiving. ‘I give 
thee thanks that thou hast counted me worthy of this day 
and this hour, that I should have a part in the number of 
thy martyrs, in the cup of thy Christ, to the resurrection of 
eternal life,” he prayed. 

The attendants kindled the fire around the old man. Still 
he stood firm. The story of that scene which has come down 
to us says that the fire did not burn quickly enough to suit 
the onlookers. The executioner pierced him with a dagger. 
And then the old man died bravely, as he had lived bravely. 
He was faithful unto death, and had won the crown of 
eternal life. 


Puttinc THE Lesson Into THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 

Probably we shall never be called on to be “ faithful unto. 
death,’ as Polycarp was, but we shall be called upon to be 
faithful during our lives. We can be faithful to God’s com- 
mands, and in being faithful to his commands, we must be 
faithful to the commands of those whom he has set to direct 
us—our parents and teachers. 

Faithfulness in the little duties that come to us every day 
will make us faithful when great things which require faith- 
fulness come to us. 


Duties Wuicu I Witt Do Farrurutty THis WEEK 


I will get up premptly every morning. 
I will be at school on time. 
I will prepare my lessons faithfully. 


264 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


I will go to bed when I am told to go. 
I will try to be faithful in all my work. 


THE Lesson TRutTH IN Your LIFE 


The Law of Faithfulness. We learn to be faithful in 
great things by first being faithful in little things. There- 
fore: : 

I will do faithfully all the duties which ,I am called on 
to do. 


NotreBook WorkK 


Complete your story of the life of Polycarp of Smyrna. 


A Story To READ 


{ 


““mHE CHRISTIANS TO THE LIONS 


There was great excitement in the Colosseum, for it was 
known that the Emperor Nero had given orders that some 
of the condemned Christians should be given to the lions. 
There was a hush of expectation as the door of the dungeon 
was opened. .. . A priest of Diana headed a procession of 
white-robed attendants and six virgins from the temple of 
Diana entered, followed by Ennia in the midst of a band of 
lictors. Even the hardened hearts of the spectators were 
.moved by the youth and beauty of the young girl, who, 
dressed in white, advanced calmly between her guards, with 
a gentle, modest expression on her features. 

When the procession formed before the emperor, she 
saluted him. The priest and the virgins surrounded her, and 
urged her to pay reverence to the statue of Diana. Point- 
ing to her parents, they implored her for their sakes to 
recant. Pale as death, and with tears streaming down her 
cheeks, she shook her head quietly. “JI cannot deny the 
Lord who died for me,” she said. 

Nero himself rose from his seat. ‘‘ Maiden,” he said, “ if 
not for your own sake, then for the sake of those who love 
you. I pray you cease from your obstinancy. How can a 
child like you know more than the wisest heads of Rome: 


JONTORICHURCH SCHOOL ‘LESSONS 265 


How can you deny the gods who have protected you and 
given victory to your country? I would fain spare you.” 


“Tam but a child, as you say, Cesar,” Ennia replied. “I 
have no strength of my own, but I am strong in the strength 
of Him I worship. He gave his life for me; it is not much 
that | should give mine for him.” 


Nero sank back in his seat with an angry wave of his 
hand. He saw that the sympathy of the audience was with 
the prisoner, and would willingly have gained their approval 
by extending his clemency toward her. The procession now 
returned to the center of the arena, where the girls, weep- 
ing, took leave of Ennia, who soon stood alone, a slight, 
helpless figure—in the sight of the great, silent multitude. 

Nero had spoken in a low tone to one of his attendants. 
The door of a cage was opened, and a lion larger than any 
that had previously appeared, entered the arena, saluting the 
spectators with a deep roar. As it did so, a tall figure, clad 
in a tunic, sprang forward from the group of attendants be- 
hind a strong barrier at the other end of the arena. It was 
Beric the Briton. A burst of applause rose from the spec- 
Patotsee eee Lectin feht |.’ they shouted; ~ let him feht!” 

Nero waited until the acclamation ceased, then ordered the 
lion to be driven back to its den, and said: “‘ The people have 
spoken; let their will be done. But we must not be unfair 
to the lion; as the maiden was unarmed, so shall you stand 
unarmed before the lion.” 

The decision was received in silence by the spectators. It 
seemed a sentence of death to the young Briton, and the 
silence was succeeded by a low murmur of disapproval. 
Beric turned a little pale, but showed no other sign of 
emotion. 

“T accept the conditions,” he said in a loud, steady voice; 
“it being understood that should I conquer, the damsel shall 
be free from all penalty, and shall be restored to her 
parents.” 

“That is understood,” Nero replied. With an inclination 
of his head to the emperor, and a wave of his hand to the 
spectators, Beric turned and walked across the arena to 
where his friend, Scopus, awaited him with a cloak. Wrap- 
ping himself in its ample folds, he walked back to the center 


266 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


of the arena. A murmur of surprise arose. Why should 
the Briton cumber his limbs with this garment? 


Throwing off the cloak, Beric exclaimed: “ You see I am 
unarmed. I have not so much as a dagger.” ‘Then tearing 
off two broad strips from the edge of the garment, he 
twisted them into ropes, and formed a running nooze in 
each. What was left of the cloak he threw over his arm, 
and signed to the attendants of the cage to open the door. 
. . . The door of the den was opened. Beric stepped a few 
paces toward it. . . . The lion dashed out of its den with 
a sudden spring, made three or four leaps forward, and then 
paused with its eyes fixed on the lad standing in front of it, 
still and immovable, in an easy pose, ready for action. 


Then it sank until its body nearly touched the ground, and 
began to crawl with a stealthy, gliding motion toward him. 
More and more slowly it went until it paused at a distance of 
some ten yards. For a few seconds it crouched motionless, 
save for a slow, waving motion of its tail; then with a sharp 
roar it sprang through the air. With a motion as quick 
Beric leaped aside. 

As it touched the ground he sprang . . . and wrapped his 
cloak in many folds round its head, knotting the ends tightly. 
Then, as the lion, recovering from its first surprise, sprang 
to its feet with a roar of anger and disgust, Beric was on his 
feet beside it. For a moment it strove to tear away the 
strange substance which enveloped its head. But Beric 
dropped the end of the noose over one of its forepaws, drew 
it tight, and with a sudden pull jerked the animal over on its 
back. . . 

The lion was helpless now. As it rolled over and over, 
uttering roars of vain fury, Beric snatched the cloth from 
its head, tore off another strip, twisted it, and without diffi- 
culty bound its hind legs together. Then he again wrapped 
it round the lion’s head, and stood up breathless but vic- 
torious. A mighty shout shook the building. Never had 
such a feat been seen in the arena before. . 

“Finnia,” Beric said, “ God has saved us; the lion is help- 
less now.”” And with these words, he led her forth from the 
place that had been for both the very jaws of death. 

—GerorcE A. HENTYy. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 267 


A HyMNn VERSE To READ 


Stand fast for Christ thy Saviour! 
Stand fast whate’er betide! 
Keep then the faith, unstained, unshamed, 
By keeping at his side; 
Be faithful, ever faithful, 
Where’er thy lot be cast, 
Stand fast for Christ thy Saviour! 
Stand faithful to the last. 


—Walter J. Mathams. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
FAITHFULNESS EVERY DAY 
Matthew 25 :14-30 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We have studied this week about Polycarp, the bishop of 
Smyrna, who was burned at the stake because he would not 
give up his faith in Christ. All through the ages there have 
been men and women who have died for Christ’s sake. 
There was William Tyndale, who was one of the first of 
those who translated the Bible into English. He was ac- 
cused of heresy, and condemned to death. He was then 
strangled, and his body was burned. (October 6, 1536.) 
There was Savonarola, who was burned to death for his 
faith in Florence, Italy, in 1498. There were the martyrs 
in the Boxer Rebellion in China, in 1901. There have been 
missionaries without number. 


We probably will not be called upon to be faithful unto 
death, but we are called on to be faithful in our everyday 
lives. We must be faithful to God’s commands at home and 
in school; we must be faithful to the laws of our homes; we 
must be faithful to the laws of our school and of our city 
and of our nation. So we can please God and gain the words 
of praise, ““ Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast 
been faithful over a few things, I will set thee over many 
things.” 


268 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


THE CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, help us to be faithful in all the 
work that we have to do, faithful in carrying out our work 
for our parents and for our teachers, and for thee. We ask 
this in the name of Jesus Christ, who was faithful unto 
death. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


I Timothy 6:12; II Timothy 2:3; Matthew 16:25; Luke 
12:4-9; Matthew 25 :14-30. 


Hymns THAtT May Bg USED IN CoNNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“Lord, as We Thy Name Profess.” 
“The Son of God Goes Forth to War.” 
“ Fight the Good Fight.” 

‘Stand Fast for Christ Thy Saviour.” 
“Yield Not to Temptation.” 

“In the Hour of Trial.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Tell the story of Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna. 

2. What words did Polycarp seem to hear God’s voice 
saying to him? 

3. How do you feel about “ playing the man”? 

4. If one of your playmates urges you to disobey a rule 
of the school, how should you act? 

5. If you are playing ball and break a window of a 
neighbor’s house, what should you do? How would you 
show that you are faithful to God, if you confessed? 


Topics FOR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


In Japan it 1s the custom for the people to worship the 
emperor. Many people say that this is not real worship, but 
is only honoring him as we honor the President, when we 
stand in line to wait to see him pass, if he visits our city. 
What do you think that a Japanese Christian should do? 


JUNTORICHURECH SCHOOL, LESSONS 269 


Would heathen Japanese think that he was a true Christian ? 

2. How William Tyndale Suffered for His Faith. 

3. How Savanarola Suffered for His Faith. 

4. How the Chinese Christians Suffered for Their Faith 
in the Boxer Rebellion. 

5. How Paul Suffered. II Corinthians 11 :23-27. 

6. Doing Our Duty Day by Day. 

7. Faithfulness in Little Things. 

8. How a Junior Can Be Faithful. 


SoME oF T'HosE WHo WERE FartHFur Unto DEatu 
IN BOHEMIA 


John Huss was burned to death at the stake in 1416, for 
his faith in Christ. His last words were: “‘ The great object 
of my teaching, repentance and forgiveness of sins to man- 
kind, according to the true gospel of Jesus Christ and the 
interpretation of the holy Fathers, I am ready to die for, 
with a joyful heart.” ‘Then he repeated three times, “ Jesus, 
thou Son of the living God, have mercy on me.” His ashes 
were thrown into the river Rhine. 


IN ITALY 


Jerome Savanorola was hanged for his faith, May 23, 
1498, and his body burned. His last words were, “ My 
Lord died for my sins; shall not I gladly give this poor life 
for him?” 


AN ENGLISHMAN IN BRUSSELS 


William Tyndale, one of the earliest translators of the 
Bible into English, was living in hiding in the Castle of 
Vilvorde in Brussels. He was accused of heresy. He was 
betrayed, strangled, and then his body was burned. His 
last words were, “ Lord, open the King of England’s eyes.” 
(October 6, 1536.) 


IN CHINA 


“When Kao Lien T’eng’s house was in flames, he was 
arrested and taken to the city for trial. ‘ Why did you enter 


270 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


the Church?’ asked the Boxer chief. ‘ Because it is good.’ 
~ Why, then do you injure people?’ ‘I do harm to no one!’ 
‘Well,’ said the chief, ‘if you will leave this foreign sect and 
worship Buddha we will not harm you.’ As he made no re- 
ply the Boxers cried out, ‘ This man is not willing to repent ; 
throw him into the fire.’ The ruins of the city chapel were 
still smoldering, and on the altar of that he was offered up. 
Soon his wife’s ashes.lay with his, and three other members 
of the family were numbered with the martyrs, only two 
surviving the storm.” This was in 1901. 


GATE DER SEX OX 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
AUGUSTINE, THE HEATHEN 
Luke 15:11-19 


THE MrMory VERSE 
“ Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.”—Romans 13:14. 


Tue Lesson StTorY 


Look on your day-school geography map of the countries 
which surround the Mediterranean Sea, and find Egypt. 
Then follow the line of the north coast of Africa until you 
come to the country of Tunis. There you will find Carthage, 
one of the greatest cities of the ancient world, the city which 
was the enemy of Rome in the days of long ago. It is said 
that in Carthage there are ruins of almost as many beautiful 
buildings as in Greece itself. Its armies were noted for 
their courage and wonderful daring. Its sailors were the 
most venturesome explorers of the olden times. 

It was the great Carthaginian general, Hannibal, who 
transported his armies across the Mediterranean Sea into 
Spain, and then marched through long, wearisome days and 
nights over the snow-covered Alps, with his great elephants, 
and surprised the Romans by coming upon them from the 
north instead of from the sea to the south as they expected. 
But Carthage at last yielded to Rome and its power was lost 
in the second century before Christ, when it was conquered 
by the Roman General, Scipio. 

Christianity spread in Africa as well as in Europe, and 
Carthage, in the fourth century, was one of the greatest 
centers of Christianity in Africa. It had churches and 
schools where many of the greatest men of the Early Church 
taught. It was the center of many of the discussions about 
Christianity of that time, for we must remember that in 


271 


Big, JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL WUESSONS 


those early times there were many heathen people who did 
not understand very well the teachings of Christ, and they 
had to have very many things explained to them, that seem 
quite clear to us to-day. 

Not so very far from Carthage, in Algeria, (find it in your 
day-school geography, and mark it on your outline map) 
was a town called Tagaste, a little place now known by 
another name—Suk “Ahras. And there, in the fourth cen- 
tury A. D., lived a Roman, Patricius, a heathen of good posi- 
tion and some wealth, easy-going and worldly, and his 
Christian wife, Monica. ‘They had a little son Augustine, 
born in 354, whom his mother loved dearly, and who, she 
hoped, would grow up to be a Christian. 

But in spite of his mother’s prayers and her training, 
Augustine became a very wild young man, though he was 
very brilliant in school and college. He was sent to school 
first in the city of Madaura, and then to Carthage, where 
he studied rhetoric—which was not the same thing at all as 
your brother in high school means when he says that he is 
studying rhetoric, but more what we should mean if we were 
to say that a man was studying to be a lawyer or a public 
speaker. 

‘Augustine soon obtained a position as a teacher of rhetoric. 
He succeeded so well in his profession that he soon went to 
Rome. After that he became a teacher of rhetoric in Milan 
in Italy. He was unhappy in spite of his worldly success. 
He could not find comfort and peace of mind in any of the 
heathen writings that he was studying. 

His mother, Monica, joined him in Milan. She tried to 
persuade him to become a Christian, but could not. He 
continued in his wicked ways, though he heard the preaching 
of Ambrose, one of the most famous preachers of the time. 

Then one day something happened. A friend from Africa 
had joined Augustine. They were talking about religion. 
Augustine was so unhappy that he rushed off into a lonely 
part of the garden adjoining his house. There he fought a 
battle with himself. He did not want to become a Chris- 
tian, for he knew that if he did, he would have to give up 
many of the wicked pleasures that he enjoyed so much. 

As he fought this battle with himself he heard a child’s 
voice, perhaps in the neighboring garden. The voice said: 


TONMTOKACIOURGHE SCHOO” LESSONS 273 


“Take and read! Take and read!” He got out his Bible 
and opened it. The first words that came to his eyes were 
the words of our Memory Verse, “Put ye on the Lord 
Jesus Christ, and make not prowvision for the flesh.” He 
fell on his knees and prayed. God opened his mind and 
touched his heart. He found the truth. When he rose from 
his knees, he was a true follower of Christ. 

Quietly he went to the house and found his mother. He 
told her the good news of his change of heart. How they 
must have rejoiced together! How happy they must have 
been! 


Mar Work 


Continue your map of the countries surrounding the Medi- 
terranean Sea, putting in all the places mentioned in the 
lesson. 


NoteBook WorK 


On a new page of your notebook start a story of the life 
of Augustine giving the main facts of his early life, the 
names of his father and his mother, where he was born, and 
where he went to school. Make this account as complete as 
possible. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Augustine’s mother, Monica, prayed for him and tried to 
make him a Christian. She was an example to him “in 
word, in manner of life, in love, in faith, in purity.” We 
want to win all the world to Christ. Let us try by our ex- 
ample, our prayers, our offerings, to help others to love him 
as we do, and to aid those missionaries who are trying to 
carry the knowledge of the Saviour to foreign lands. 


MrEmMory WorkK 


“T would be true, for there are those who trust me; 
I would be pure, for where are those who care; 
I would be strong, for there is much to suffer; 
I would be brave, for there is much to dare. 


“T would be friend of all—tthe foe, the friendless; 
I would be giving, and forget the gift; 
I would be humble, for I know my weakness; 
I would look up, and laugh, and love, and lift.” 


274 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


RECENT INVESTIGATIONS IN CARTHAGE 


“In Africa the two chief centers of early Christianity 
were Alexandria and Carthage. .. . Ancient Carthage has 
been resurrected in modern times. Some one has said that 
if Palestine may be called the cradle of early Christianity, 
Carthage was its nursery. ... The Jewish and Christian 
remains, although comparatively few, are to us most inter- 
esting. The story of finding these is entrancing. One day 
a little negro child, who was in the orphanage, noticed some 
Arabs about to destroy a subterranean catacomb (an under- 
ground tomb) in order to make lime from the marble sar- 
cophagi (coffins) and inscriptions. . . .He hastened to tell 
the director what was being done. 

“The director hurried to the place and found that this 
tomb, which had been the dwelling place of hyenas for 
centuries, was in the midst of an ancient Jewish cemetery, 
where many Hebrews had been buried, with the seven 
branched candlestick and other Jewish emblems carved on 
their tombs. Some Christian graves were also found, and 
the museum contains scores and perhaps hundreds of lamps 
just such as are found in the catacombs of Rome, some 
stamped with the cross, others with the dove. Representa- 
tions are also found of Jonah and the whale, the Hebrew © 
children in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lions’ den, Christ 
bearing his cross, and so on.” 

—Simplified from “ New Archeological Discoveries,” by Cobern. 


SUNDAY SESSION 
AUGUSTINE THE CHRISTIAN 
Luke 15 :20-24 
THr MrEMory VERSE 


“ Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are hon- 
orable, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are 
pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of 
good report .. . think on these things.”——Philippians 4:8. 


JUNIORS CHORCHINSCHOOU LESSONS ais 


THE Lesson Story 


Augustine the Christian! What a change there was in the 
young man who had been a wild, self-indulgent heathen! 
Now he was a follower of the true God, trying to do those 
things that he thought God wanted him to do, trying to think 
of things true and honorable and pure and lovely. 

Monica and Augustine left Milan and started back to 
Africa. On the way Monica died. Augustine went on to 
Tagaste. He spent his days and nights in studying the Bible. 
He became one of the best-known speakers in northern 
Africa. 

One day he visited the church at Hippo in Algeria. The 
minister there was old. He said in the service that day 
that he needed an assistant. The people in the congregation 
knew that Augustine was present. They called out at once: 
“We want Augustine as our preacher! We want Augus- 
a ag 

Augustine was astonished at their demand, but he gave in 
to them and was ordained. Later he was made Bishop of 
Hippo, and for thirty-five years he filled the position, preach- 
ing and teaching, studying and writing about Christianity 
and its truth. And besides all these things it is said that “ he 
relieved the needs of the poor, managed the property of his 
diocese, preached in the cathedral, prepared converts for 
membership in the church, ministered impartially to rich and 
poor, educated and ignorant, and in spite of threats and 
dangers and hardships, served Christ with the utmost devo- 
tion to the very end. 

But northern Africa was not to remain a peaceful center 
of Christianity. Vandal hordes of barbarians came down 
from northern Europe and invaded Spain. From there they 
crossed the sea and overran Africa. They attacked Hippo. 
During the siege, in 430, Augustine died, at the age of 
seventy-six. He did not live to see Carthage destroyed ; 
nothing was left of it but ruins. He did not know how 
the Christian civilization of northern Africa was wiped out. 

Though Augustine the man died, his work lived on. For 
a thousand years his influence was very strong in the Chris- 
tian Church, and he is thought to have been one of the 
greatest of those teachers who are called “ Church Fathers.” 


276 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


He is known through all the world to-day, almost fifteen 
hundred years after his death, as a great teacher and a great 
preacher. 


PUTTING THE LEsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Are you Juniors like Augustine the heathen, or like Au- 
gustine the Christian? Are you self-willed and impatient of 
control, or are you willing to give up your own way, and 
accept God’s way for you? 

If you are trying to do God’s will, where do you go when 
you need help? Do you read the Bible, where God speaks 
to you, and pray, where you speak to God? Do you take the 
advice of your parents and teachers? In all those places you 
can find out what God wants you to do. 

When Augustine became a Christian, he became a 
preacher. Perhaps some of you Juniors are already plan- 
ning what you will be when you grow up—engineers, mer- 
chants, lawyers, doctors. Have you ever thought of being 
ministers or missionaries? Perhaps that is what God wants 
you to be. Think about it. 


Tur Lesson TRuTH IN Your LIFE 


God wants his children through all the world to serve 
him. He forgives those who sin, as he forgave Augustine, 
and as the father in the parable of the Prodigal Son forgave 
his son. But he wants us to serve him always. He would 
rather have us begin our service to him when we are young 
as Timothy was. Therefore I will try to serve Christ now, 
and will try to follow his will rather than my own. 


NoteBook Worx 
Complete your story of the life of Augustine the Christian. 


A STEADFAST FOLLOWER OF CHrRIst, WHO LIvED IN ALGIERS 


There was in the sixteenth century, a young Arab whe 
had become a true follower of Christ. He had given up his 
heathen ways. He had been baptized, and had been given 
the Christian name Geronimo, or Jerome, He was captured 
by a Moorish pirate in 1569, and taken as a prisoner to 


TONTORS CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 277 


Algiers. There the Arabs tried in every way to make him 
vive up Christianity. He steadfastly refused to do so, and 
he was condemned to death. At that time the Arabs were 
building a fort in Algiers, called “the Fort of the T'wenty- 
Four Hours.” They thought of a horrible death for 
Geronimo. They bound him hand and foot, and threw him 
alive into a mold in which a block of concrete was about to 
be made. This block, containing his body, was built into a 
corner of the fort. 

This story was told by Hedo, a historian, who wrote in 
1612, and it was considered just an old legend. But in 1853, 
the Fort of the Twenty-Four Hours was torn down, and in 
the angle specified by Heedo, the skeleton of Geronimo was 
found. The bones were buried in the cemetery, but into the 
mold of concrete left where his body had been, liquid plaster 
of Paris was poured, and a perfect model was obtained, 
showing even the young man’s features, the cords which 
bound him, and the material of his clothing. The model is 
now in the museum in Algiers, and a visitor who examined 
it recently says that the expression on the face is an ex- 
pression of perfect peace. He was happy in dying for 
Christ’s sake. 


A Hymn VERSE To READ 


“Strong founded like a lighthouse, 

That stands the storm and shock, 

So be thy soul as if it shared 
The granite of the rock; 

Then far beyond the breakers 
Let thy calm light be cast, 

Stand fast for Christ thy Saviour! 
Stand faithful to the last.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
SERVING GOD IN OUR YOUTH 
II Timothy 1:3-5; 3:14-16 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


Although Augustine became one of the greatest of the 
preachers and teachers of the Early Church, he must have 


278 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


been sorry that he had not served God in his boyhood and 
young manhood. He became a great teacher through God’s 
grace. He was like the prodigal son of Jesus’ parable. He 
was given a second chance. We who are still only Juniors 
should learn from Augustine the lesson of serving God while 
we are still young. Think of the many tears which his 
mother must have shed on account of his waywardness. 
Think of his own struggles to give up his sins. Let us try 
to be free from sins. Let us try to serve God from child- 
hood. Let us follow the example of Jesus, the Example of 
perfect childhood, and try, with God’s help, as we increase 
in stature, to increase also in favor with God and men. 


Tue Ciass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we ask thee that we may serve thee 
while we are still Juniors. We pray that we may follow 
thee with all our hearts and minds, while we are young. 
Make us true believers in thee, and keep us from straying 
into sin. Cleanse thou us from faults, we ask thee, and 
make us true followers of thee. We ask in Jesus’ name. 
Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


Psalm 71:5, 17, 18; Ecclesiastes 11:9, 10; 12:1; Jeremiah 
3:4> Psalm 148:12) Matthew 18:3 19:13 »MarkeiOaiy zs 


Hymns tTHat May Br USED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“ Stand Fast for Christ Thy Saviour.” 
“Father, Lead Me Day by Day.” 

Stands Up, standgU p tor.) ests» 

“The Wise May Bring Their Learning.” 
“Hear the Captain Clearly Calling.” 

“Crown Him with Many Crowns.” 

“Ye Servants of God, Your Master Proclaim.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Tell briefly the story of Augustine. Who were his 
mother and his father? Where did he live? Where did he 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 279 


teach? What became of him after he became a Christian ? 

2. Do you think that Augustine would have been hap- 
pier 1f he had served God when he was a boy? 

3. Find in the Bible and be prepared to give the account 
of a boy king who served God. II Kings 11:21; 12:2. 

4. ind in the Bible and be prepared to give the account 
of another boy king who served God. II Kings 22:1, 2. 

9. Find in the Bible the words of a prophet who served 
God when he was young. Jeremiah 1:6, 7. 

6. Find in the Bible the account of four young men who 
served God in a foreign land. Daniel, chapter 1. 

7. ‘Tell the story of Timothy. 


Topics For Discussion or REPoRTS 


1. The Connection Between the Jews and Africa. 
(a) Abraham and Egypt. Genesis 12:10. 
oe Joseph and Egypt. Genesis 37:28; 41:41, 42; 
O22" 


(c) Moses and Egypt. Exodus 5:1; 13:17-19. 
(d) Solomon and Egypt. II Kings 3:1. 
(e) Joseph and Mary Flee with the Baby Jesus to 
Egypt. Matthew 2:13-23. 
(f) Philip and the Ethiopian. Acts 8:26-40. 
2. How the Gospel Reached North Africa. 
3. The Church in North Africa. 
4. How Juniors Can Serve God Even Though They Are 
Only Children. 


SomME Boys WHo SERVED Gop FROM THEIR YOUTH. Up 


William Brewster, the leader of the Puritans, was one of 
those who, when he was still very young, decided to serve 
God. The Puritans gathered at his home in Scrooby, Eng- 
jand, and there began the movement which led to their com- 
ing to America. 

Jonathan Edwards, who became the president of Prince- 
ton College, was a very brilliant little boy. At six he began 
to study Latin. When he was about seven years old, he be- 
came seriously interested in religious things. At that time 
he used to pray in secret five times a day. He became one 
of the greatest preachers of his time. 


280 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


John Witherspoon, the Presbyterian minister who signed 
the Declaration of Independence, became a steadfast fol- 
lower of Christ when he was very young, through the in- 
fluence of his mother, who was a descendant of John Knox. 

Adoniram Judson, the great missionary to Burma, used to 
read the Bible when he was only three years old. Like 
Augustine, he passed through time when he doubted the 
Bible, but later he beeame a true follower of Christ. 

Robert Morrison was the son of a godly father and mother. 
When he was thirteen years old, he was able to recite all the 
one hundred and seventy-six verses of Psalm 119 without a 
mistake. His wonderful memory was a great help to him 
in doing God’s work, for he needed to remember many things 
when he attempted to translate the Bible into Chinese. 

John G. Paton also was the son of godly parents. When 
he decided to become a missionary his mother said that 
although she had never told him so, she had prayed from his 
babyhood that he should take up this work. 


CHE REX 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX 
I Samuel 1 :24-28 


Tur MrMory VERSE 
“Put on the whole armor of God.”—Ephesians 6:11a. 


THE Lesson STORY 


There was a long period of time between our last lesson 
and the lesson that we are to study this week. Augustine 
died in the year 430, in the midst of the siege of Hippo by 
the heathen. After his death there was a time when Chris- 
tianity and heathenism had a hard fight for the mastery. 
But at last Christianity conquered in Europe, though even 
those parts of Asia Minor and Africa which had been Chris- 
tian in the first centuries after Christ, were in the hands of 
heathen rulers. E;ven Palestine, the home of Jesus and the 
birthplace of Christianity, was ruled by the Saracens, or 
Turks. 

You remember from your study of history in day school 
how the Christians of Europe felt about this. They planned 
crusades to Palestine to try to regain the holy places of the 
Christian religion. They did not think that it was right for 
the Turks to rule over the city of Jerusalem, or over Bethle- 
hem, where Christ had been born. You all know some of 
the great stories of the Crusades. Richard the Lion-Hearted 
was king of England. You probably have read about him in 
“Tvanhoe.” ‘The First Crusade was in 1096, and an army 
of eighty thousand Christians, under the leadership of God- 
frey de Bouillon, entered Jerusalem in 1099, and made 
Godfrey king of Jerusalem. 

It was during this time, when the people of Europe were 
planning crusades to the Holy Land, when valiant knights 
were giving their strength and even their lives in the fight 


281 


282 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


for Christianity, that Bernard of Clairvaux was growing up. 
He was born in 1090 in Fontaines in Burgundy (France). 
He was a member of a knightly family. Hus father was a 
brave knight named Tescelin, and his mother was a wonder- 
ful Christian woman named Aleth, or Aletta. He was the 
third son in the family. When he was a tiny baby his 
mother carried him to the church, and dedicated him to 
God’s service, as Hannah had dedicated Samuel, I Samuel 
1 :24-28. But Aletta died when Bernard was only a child, 
and as he grew up he turned his thoughts to worldly ways. 
His brothers were knights. He might have been a knight, 
too. He might have gone to the king’s court, and have be- 
come, a courtier. But finally he chose neither of these 
things. When he was twenty-three years old he made up 
his mind to do as his mother had hoped that he would do— 
he gave his life to the service of God. He did not have to 
struggle to do right as Augustine had had to do. It was far 
easier for him to become a Christian than it had been for 
Augustine. 

In the days of Bernard, people thought that when they 
gave their lives to the service of God, they must live apart 
from the world in monasteries and convents. So Bernard 
went into the monastery of Citeaux, which was near his own 
home. There he preached with such great eloquence and 
persuasive power that he won many people to follow him 
into the monastery. His four brothers came to be with him, 
and many other relatives. 

Soon there was a new monastery planned at a place named 
“ Clairvaux,’ a French word which means ‘“ Clearview,” 
often called by the people who lived near by. “ The Valley 
of Light.” Bernard was made the head of this monastery, 
and there he and his followers lived in peace and plenty. 
The monastery became known everywhere for its generosity 
and kindness. During the time of a famine in the country 
of Burgundy, the men from the monastery fed two thousand 
people for two months, until the famine was over. No 
wonder that it was famous through all the land i 

In 1144 the news reached Europe that the Mohammedans 
in Palestine were becoming too strong for the Christian 
forces. Bernard proclaimed a Second Crusade, to go to the 
help of those who were fighting in the Holy Land, and by 


JOR TO RACHORCHISCHOOL-LESSONS 283 


his preaching and teaching won the interest of King Louis 
VII of France and of Emperor Conrad III of Germany. 
He won thousands of followers because he preached so won- 
derfully. He did not teach that men should fight to win 
wealth or fame, but that they should not allow the Holy 
Land to be held by the heathen. But unfortunately the 
Second Crusade was a failure, and Bernard returned to his 
monastery. 

Though Bernard was given many opportunities for greater 
positions in the Church, he preferred to remain the Abbot of 
Clairvaux all his life. He was a man of the greatest devo- 
tion to Christ, a great preacher, a great man of prayer. He 
died in 1153, and has been called “the first preacher of his 
age, and one of the greatest of all ages . . . the best known 
and the most widely known man of his age.” 


HANDWORK 


Try to get a sheet of drawing paper. If you cannot get 
this, a sheet of note paper will do. Print in your best letter- 
ing the first verse of the hymn which you are asked to 
memorize. If you cannot letter well, copy it in your best 
handwriting. Make as attractive a border as possible. If 
you cannot draw a border cut one out from colored paper, 
and paste it around the hymn. 


NoteEBooK WorkK 


Begin the story of Bernard of Clairvaux on a new page 
of your notebook. Perhaps you can find the picture of a 
crusader of the Middle Ages to use as a decoration. Per- 
haps you can copy the picture given on page 284, and color 
it to use as an initial decoration for your story. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Bernard and his followers were known far and wide for 
the good that they did among the people of Burgundy. Per- 
haps the class can this week provide a basket of food to give 
to a poor family, as Bernard and his friends fed the starv- 
ing people at the time of the famine. There are many little 
children in distant parts of the world who need our help. 
Can you think of anything to do that will help these hungry 
children in Syria or in China or in India? Can you do it? 


284 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 





Mermory Work 


Learn the following stanzas. After you have studied your 
Sunday lesson you will understand the reason that you are 
asked to learn this particular hymn. 


“Jesus, the very thought of thee 
With sweetness fills my breast; 
But sweeter far thy face to see, 
And in thy presence rest. 


“Nor voice can sing, nor heart can frame, 
Nor can the memory find, 
A sweeter sound than thy blessed name, 
O Saviour of mankind. 


“O Hope of every contrite heart, 
O Joy of all the meek, 
To those who fall, how kind thou art! 
How good to those who seek! 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 285 


“ But what to those who find? Ah, this 
Nor tongue nor pen can show: 
The love of Jesus, what it is 
None but his loved ones know. 


“Jesus, our only Joy be thou, 
As thou our Prize wilt be; 
Jesus, be thou our Glory now, 
And through eternity.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 


SOME OF THE THINGS THAT BERNARD ACCOM- 
PLISHED FOR CHRIST 


II Timothy 1 :6-10 
Tue Memory VERSE 


“Oh give thanks unto Jehovah, call upon his name; 
Make known among the peoples his doings. 
Sing unto him, sing praises unto him; 
Talk ye of all his marvellous works.”—Psalm 105:1, 2. 


Tur Lesson STORY 


Bernard of Clairvaux was a very great preacher and a 
very great teacher. He was a man of great sincerity and 
honesty of heart. He loved God truly. He was a man of 
great courage. 

The ruler of southwestern France at the time of Bernard 
was William of Aquitaine, a man almost a giant in size and 
of a terrible temper. He thought that he had power to do 
as he chose in the Church as well as in his court. He 
thought that there was no law in the land except that which 
ie decreed. 

One day he went to Bernard’s monastery of Clairvaux. 
Bernard had been having a service in the church. He was 
a frail, slender man, who seemed small in comparison to the 
huge duke. But as William stood there and mocked at the 
Church, Bernard did not hesitate. He stood boldly before 
the duke. His eyes flashed with righteous indignation. 

“Your Judge is here, at whose name every knee shall 


286 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONG 


bow, of things in heaven, and things on earth, and things 
under the earth!’ hetsaid-7 Yours) dee ic@nercmmaa 
whose hands your soul is to pass! Will you spurn (or make 
sport of ) him also?” 

The duke stood silent. Then suddenly he fell to the 
ground before Bernard. He saw that the abbot was God’s 
messenger. He acknowledged his sins, and asked to become 
a member of the Church. 

Besides his preaching and teaching and the good works 
that he did, Bernard was the writer of many sermons and 
letters and other books. He also wrote many hymns. One 
of these hymns, which is given in our Hymnal is this: 


“© sacred head, now wounded, 
With grief and shame weighed down; 
Now scorntfully surrounded 
With thorns, thine only crown; 
O sacred head, what glory, 
What bliss till now was thine! 
Yet, though despised and gory, 
I joy to call thee mine. 


“© noblest brow and dearest, 

In other days the world 

All feared when thou appearedst; 
What shame on thee is hurled! 

How art thou pale with anguish, 
With sore abuse and scorn; 

How does that visage languish 
Which once was bright as morn! 


What thou, my Lord, hast suffered 
Was all for sinners Satie 

Mine, mine was the transgression, 
But thine the deadly pain. 

Lo, here I fall, my Saviour! 
*Tis I deserve thy place; 

Look on me with thy favor, 
Vouchsafe to me thy grace. 


“What language shall I borrow 
To thank thee, dearest Friend, 
For this thy dying sorrow, 
Thy pity without end? 
make me thine forever: 
And should I fainting be, 
Lord, let me never, never 
Outlive my love to thee. 


Tu oneCroRCH SCHOOL LESSONS 287 


“Be near when I am dying, 
O show thy cross to me; 
And for my succor flying, 
Come, Lord, to set me free: 
These eyes, new faith receiving, 
From Jesus shall not move; 
For he who dies believing, 
Dies safely, through thy love.” 


The other hymns which are usually thought to have been 
written by Bernard are “ Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee,” 
given on page 284, which you were asked to learn, and 
“Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts.” These hymns were 
originally written in Latin, but they have been translated 
into German, French, and English, and are known all over 
the Christian world. They show a great love for Christ and 
his Church, and a great tenderness and longing for Christ. 


Puttine THE Lesson INtTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Bernard of Clairvaux began to serve Christ when he was 
only a boy. He never very seriously considered any other 
calling. He chose preaching as his life work. Have you 
ever thought that God might want you to be a preacher or 
a missionary ? 

When Bernard first began to preach he won his own 
brothers to follow Christ, among the first. Huis life must 
have set a good example to them, or they would not have 
been converted by his preaching. He must have been an 
example not only in his preaching but in the way that he 
lived. Do you live in such a way that those in your own 
family know that you are a real Christian? Or are you 
cross when you get up in the morning, and impatient when 
mother asks you to go on an errand, and angry if the baby’ 
interferes with your play? Do you follow God’s will on 
Sunday and your own will every day? ‘Then you are not a 
true Christian. Bea Christian at home, every day, and be 
an example to your own family as Bernard was, so that 
your brothers and sisters will know that you love Jesus. 

Bernard was brave when it was necessary for him to stand 
up for the truth. Are you always brave for the right, or are 
you sometimes afraid to stand up for what you know is true? 


288 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Tuer Lesson TRutTH IN Your LIF 


Bernard was brave; he was true; he was faithful; he 
loved Christ with all his heart and with all his soul and with 
all his strength and with all his mind. He showed this be- 
cause he gave all his life to God. He dedicated his great 
talents as a preacher and a teacher and a writer to God’s 
service. His life every day was such that he was an ex- 
ample not only to those who saw him only once in a while, 
but also to those who saw him every day. God is pleased 
with those who try to follow his Commandments in their 
daily life. I, too, will try to live that those who know me 
best will be sure that I am God’s child. 


NoteEsook Work 


Complete your work on the hymn, “Jesus, the Very 
Thought of Thee,” which you began during the week. After 
you finish your own work perhaps you can help some one 
else. 


A BravE MIssIONARY TO THE MOHAMMEDANS 


About one hundred and fifty years after the days of 
Bernard of Clairvaux, there was a brave follower of Christ 
who wanted to tell the gospel story to the Mohammedans in 
North Africa, and to make them followers of Christ. This 
was Raymund Lull, who lived in the years 1235 to 1315. He 
was a Spaniard, a member of a distinguished family. Like 
Bernard, he was rich. He was a skilled musician and the 
court poet in the Spanish court. But when he was thirty- 
two years old he made up his mind to give up his life in 
court and to become a preacher. He sold almost all his 
estates, and gave his money to the poor. 

You can see by looking at your map that Spain is not very 
far from North Africa. Raymund Lull planned to preach 
to the Moslems, as the Mohammedans were often called. 
The first thing that he did was to study their language, 
Arabic. When he was forty years old, he became a mis- 
sionary, and when he was fifty-six he set out alone to preach 
about Christ in northern Africa. When he reached Tunis, 
he invited the Moslems to talk with them, but the only result 
was that he was thrown into prison by order of the sultan. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 289 


He was at last set free, and sent back to Europe. But he 
would not stay. He went back to his work again, and again 
was imprisoned and banished with threats of death. Over 
and over this happened. His faith in God and love for him 
sent him to teach and to preach about him to the heathen. 
Raymund Lull’s last expedition to Africa was when he 
was seventy-nine years old. He preached in secret for a 
few months. ‘Then he ventured to preach openly, but he was 
seized and dragged out of the city and stoned to death, as 
Stephen had been. He was one of the early Christian mis- 
sionaries and martyrs, who is very little known, but he was a 
true follower of Christ, for whose sake he gave his life. 


A HyMn VERSE To READ 


“ Stouthearted like a soldier, 
Who never leaves the fight, 
But meets the foeman face to face 
And meets him with his might, 
So bear thee in thy battles 
Until the war be past, 
Stand fast for Christ thy Saviour! 
Stand faithful to the last.” 





EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
CHOOSING OUR LIFE WORK 
Matthew 7 :24-26 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We boys and girls here to-day are only Juniors, but already 
we should be thinking and planning about our life work. 
Some of us may know already what we want to be when 
we grow up, but most of us are still undecided about this. 
Perhaps God has given us a special talent in some particular 
direction, and then we know that he wants us to use this 
talent. Perhaps he wants us to be preachers and mission- 
aries as Bernard was, and we should consider these callings 
as well as others. 

We may not be able to decide right away, and it may not 
be wise for us to decide, whether we want to be preachers or 


290 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


teachers or lawyers or doctors or business men or house- 
keepers, when we grow up. But we do know that we should 
try to do God’s will, even though we are only Juniors. We 
should try to make our bodies strong and healthy by leav- 
ing alone those things that will harm them; we should study 
hard and work hard and play hard, and try to lay a good 
foundation for our lives. 

Our parents dedicated us to God when we were baptized. 
As Juniors let us try to serve him by laying good foundations 
for our future life work, whatever that may be. 


THe CLAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we are only children, but we want 
to serve thee with all our hearts and with all our strength 
and with all our minds. Help us to choose those things that 
it is right for us to do. Help us to-day to be able to tell 
right from wrong, so that when we are older, we may be 
able to tell what is thy will for us. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Proverbs 1:8, 9; 3:1-4; 4:7; Ecclesiastes 12:1; Joshua 
24:15, 24; Luke 2:40, 53; I Samuel 3:19; Il Timothy 3:14. 


Hymns tTHat May Bs Usep 1n CoNNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“O Sacred Head, Now Wounded.” 

“ Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee.” 
“Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts.” 
“The Church’s One Foundation.” 
“My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less.” 
“ Soldiers of Christ, Arise.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What can you tell about the Crusades? 

2. Tell the story of one man who lived between A. D. 
1000 and 1300, who gave his life to Christ’s service. 

3. Who was Bernard of Clairvaux? 

4. Where did he live? 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 29) 


5. Repeat the words of a hymn that Bernard wrote. Tell 
the names of some other of his hymns. 

6. Tell something of his story. 

7. Read the account of him which you have written in 
your notebook. 


Topics For DiscussIon or REPoR'S 


1. How a Junior Can Lay a Good Foundation for Life. 

2. How a Junior Can Know What God Wants Him to 
Do with His Life. 

3. How Bernard Found Out What His Life Work Was 
to Be. 

4. Dedication to God’s Service. 

5. Serving God as a Business Man. 

6. Serving God in the Home. 

7. Serving God in Our Daily Duties. 


To READ IN THE MEETING 


If I ask God earnestly, and with all my heart, he will show 
me the way that he wants me to go in my life work. 

I can be God’s servant in whatever calling I choose. 

If I become a doctor, I can serve God in helping others ; if 
I become a lawyer I can serve God by being honorable and 
just in all my dealings with others; if I become a business 
man, I can serve God, too, in the same way. 

I can serve God in my home and in my school. 

If I become a carpenter, as Jesus was, I can serve God 
by doing my work well. 

I can serve God if I become a housekeeper, or a teacher, 
or a stenographer. 

Whatever I may do with my life, I will try to do it as God 
wants me to do it. I will try to do my work as in God’s 
sight. 

“Who sweeps a room, as for thy laws, 

Makes that and the action fine.” 


CHARTER Sac 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE LIFE OF MARTIN LUTHER 
~ Acts 4:13-20 
THe Memory VERSE 


“We cannot but speak the things which we saw and 
heard.” —Acts 4:20. 


THE LESSON STORY 


Over three hundred years had passed since the days of 
Bernard of Clairvaux. Christopher Columbus was at the 
Spanish court, trying to persuade King Ferdinand and 
Queen Isabella to give him the money for ships in, which to 
start on his journey around the world. In England, King 
Henry VII was the ruler, and in France, Charles VIII. The 
world had changed very much since the days of Polycarp; 
he need not have feared to proclaim Christ now; for Chris- 
tianity was the ruling religion in all Europe, and the Church 
of Christ was recognized everywhere. 

But the Church had changed, too. It was no longer a 
body of poor, persecuted followers of Christ. It was a body 
of rich persecutors, who ruled the world as tyrannically as 
the wicked Nero in the days of the early Christian martyrs 
had ruled in Rome. The Church which had been founded 
by a Man whose rule was in the hearts of men, now was 
under the leadership of men who ruled by might and force— 
the pope at Rome, and those under him—the bishops and 
priests. The people of Europe were so terrified by the rule 
of these men that they obeyed them completely. The Bible 
had been taken from them, so that they could not read God’s 
Word for themselves. They believed what the priests told 
them, and God’s priests had so forgotten his teachings that 
they thought only of themselves and of gaining riches. 

One of the ways in which riches were gained was this: 


292 


PUNTORSCHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 293 


“Suppose a man committed a sin, say of stealing. He had 
been sorry for it, and had confessed that he had done wrong. 
He had paid back what he had stolen. So far, that was 
right. But, the priests said, the man had sinned also against 
God. He could not gain God’s forgiveness just because he 
had confessed and had been sorry for his crime, and had 
tried to repay what he had taken. God demanded payment, 
too. So the pope and the priests gave what they called 
“indulgences,” a sort of paper which they said was a pardon 
from God, and which a sinner could purchase for money. 
The Church used this money. Sometimes when the priests 
wanted money, they said that a man had sinned, and de- 
manded that he buy an indulgence, even when he was inno- 
cent. Of course this was wrong. God does not have to be 
paid to forgive sin. He forgives freely those who are hon- 
estly sorry for their wrongdoings, and who try to do right. 

Sometimes the people and the priests in those long-ago 
days would say that a whole city or a whole country had 
sinned. They would make the people pay great sums of 
money or else they would not baptize any child in the place, 
or marry any young people, or bury any of those who died. 
This was called an “ interdict.’ It seemed as if the people 
of the world had forgotten completely all about Christ’s 
Kingdom of love and forgiveness and peace. 

It was just at this time that Martin Luther lived. He was 
born in 1483, in Eisleben, in Germany. His father, Hans 
Luther, was a copper miner, and he made some money in 
his business. He was anxious that his son should get on in 
the world, so he sent him to school in Mansfield. From there 
Martin went on through schools at Magdeburg and Fisenach. 
At last he became a student at the University of Erfurt, at 
that time one of the most famous places of learning in 
Germany. 

Luther’s father had intended that he become a lawyer, and 
Luther himself was preparing for this profession. But all 
during his student days, he was troubled about religious 
matters. When he was twenty-two years old, he felt that he 
could not find happiness if he became a lawyer. He decided 
to enter one of the monasteries at Erfurt. This he did in 
1505. In 1508 he went as an instructor to the University of 
Wittenberg. He studied and taught both at Erfurt and 


294 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Wittenberg until 1516. But he was no happier in his re- 
ligious life than he had been when he was studying to be a 
lawyer. He tried to find something more in the Bible than 
he had learned in the monasteries. Then, in 1516 and 1517, 
when he was studying Paul’s Epistle to the Romans, Luther 
learned the truth which the members of the Church had for- 
gotten—that man is saved from sin by God’s grace—that it 
is what God gives, and not what human beings do that makes 
us happy and at peace. God forgives sins. Man cannot do 
this. 

When Luther came to feel in this way, he knew that many 
of the practices of the Church in his day. were wrong. He 
saw that one wrong thing was the sale of indulgences, or 
pardons. In 1517, a man named Johann Tetzel came to 
Wittenberg, to sell indulgences. Luther preached against 
him, and on the night of October 31, 1517, he posted his pro- 
tests on the door of the church at Wittenberg, which was 
used in those days something as a bulletin board is used 
nowadays. ‘These protests are called “The Ninety-Five 
Theses,” because there were ninety-five objections against 
the way in which indulgences were sold, and against other 
things of the same sort. 

At once there was a storm of anger against Luther. He 
was charged with heresy, or rebellion against the Church. 
He was sent for, to appear before the pope in Rome. Soon 
he was in the midst of a fight for his belief—a fight which 
resulted in the Reformation, when the Protestant Churches 
separated from the Roman Catholic Church. 


HANDWORK 


Put on the blackboard, using colored crayon and chalk, 
the hymn “ A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” which Luther 


wrote. 


“A mighty Fortress is our God, 
A Bulwark never failing; 
Our Helper he amid the flood 
Of mortal ills prevailing: 

For still our ancient foe 

Doth seek to work us woe; 

His craft and power are great, 

And, armed with cruel hate, 
On earth is not his equal. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 295 


“Did we in our own strength confide, 

Our striving would be losing; 

Were not the right man on our side, 
The man of God’s own choosing: 

Dost ask who that may be 

Christ Jesus, it is he; 

Lord Sabaoth his name, 

From age to age the same, 
And he must win the battle. 


“And though this world, with devils filled, 

Should threaten to undo us; 

We will not fear, for God hath willed 
His truth to triumph through us: 

The Prince of darkness grim— 

We tremble not for him; 

His rage we can endure, 

For lo! his doom is sure, 
One little word shall fell him. 


“That word above all earthly powers, 

No thanks to them, abideth; 

The Spirit and the gifts are ours 
Through him who with us sideth: 

Let goods and kindred go, 

This mortal life also; 

The body they may kill: 

God’s truth abideth still, 
His Kingdom is forever.” 


NoteBook Work 


The hero of our lessons this week is the man who began 
the great Protestant Reformation. In this movement the 
Protestant Churches, or Churches which protested against 
the old way of doing things, had their beginnings. Some of 
these Protestant Churches are the Presbyterian, the Luth- 
eran, the Baptist, the Methodist, and many others. Write 
in your notebooks the beginning of a complete story of 
Luther’s life. Find a picture of Luther to use with your 
story. If you cannot find his picture turn to the hymn, “A 
Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” which you will find in your 
church hymnal, and at the head of your story, copy the first 
part of the music of this hymn, to remind you that Luther 
wrote it. 


296 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOU LESSON. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Martin Luther worked hard in school when he was a boy. 
He learned his lessons well. He won much praise. Have 
you noticed that the last three men about whom we have 
had lessons, worked and studied very hard? Augustine was 
a great student; so was Bernard; so was Luther. Try to be 
like these men, and to learn each day perfectly the lessons 
which are given you in school. In this way you will be lay- 
ing a good foundation stone for your life work for Jesus. 


Memory Work 
Learn the words of “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
LUTHER THE REFORMER 
John 3:16-21 


THE MrEMory VERSE 


“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begot- 
ten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, 
but have eternal life.”’—John 3:16. 


Tur Lesson Story 


There was a great crowd in the public square at Witten- 
berg. A bonfire was blazing in the square, lighting the sky 
with its flames. Some of the people were terrified at what 
was going on. Others did not care. 

““He’s a brave man to burn the pope’s decree,” said one. 

“He'll suffer for it. The pope and God will punish him,” 
said others. 

But Martin Luther was not afraid of what man might do 
to him. His conscience was clear. He felt that he knew 
God’s will, and that he was carrying it out. He was fight- 
ing for his belief, with his back against the wall. He had 
had argument after argument, debate after debate, with other 
preachers. The pope at Rome had ordered him to stop 


PUNTORSCHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 297 


preaching and to say publicly that he had been wrong. He 
issued an order commanding that Luther should do this 
within sixty days, or else be put out of the Church. And it 
was this order that Luther was burning in the public square, 
in the midst of the people of Wittenberg! Luther was not 
afraid. 

Luther was next commanded to go before the royal coun- 
cil, or Diet, at the city of Worms, April 17, 1521. The son 
of a poor miner stood unafraid before the great emperor. 
He was again ordered to recant, or say that he had been 
wrong. But Luther was like Peter and John when they 
were taken before the sanhedrin. He would not tell what 
was untrue. He did not believe that he was wrong, and so 
he would not say so. ‘Unless I am commanded by the 
Scriptures and by right reason,” he said, “I am bound by 
the texts of the Bible. My conscience is captive to the Word 
of God. I neither can nor will recant anything since it is 
neither right nor safe to act against conscience,” And then 
he said the great words which have come down to us, as 
showing the foundation of his faith: “ Here I stand, I can- 
not do otherwise; God help me. Amen.” 

Luther was dismissed by the emperor. His friends were 
afraid that he would be injured by his enemies, and they 
took him to the Castle of the Wartburg. There he stayed 
for many months in hiding, but his pen was busy and he set 
to work on an important task—to give back to’ the people of 
Germany the Bible. In order to do this he put it in their 
own language. He translated it from the Latin and Greek 
and Hebrew in which it had been read before this, and soon 
it was printed, and thousands of copies were given to the 
people everywhere. When all the people could read for 
themselves what God had really said to them, many of them 
would no longer obey the rules which the pope gave to them. 
They thought for themselves. They knew that the pope 
could not pardon their sins; they knew that only God could 
do that. So began the great Reformation, in which the 
Protestant Churches of the world separated from the Roman 
Catholic Church. 

Luther, the father of the Reformation, lived until he saw 
many of his teachings spreading among the people. He died 
in 1546, when he was sixty-three years old. 


298 JUNIOR (CHURCH SS CHOOR SSO. 


PuTTING THE LEsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


When we are not certain about whether something that 
we want to do is right or wrong, we should ask God to help 
us to decide. 

Conscience and the Word of God, the Bible, will help us 
to know the truth. 

Luther knew the truth. He said: “ Here I stand, I cannot 
do otherwise ; God help me. Amen.” Do you stand firm for 
what you know is right, if some of your friends want you to 
do wrong? Do you stand firm, when a real test comes? 
Suppose that you find a question in the history examination 
that you aren’t exactly sure about—a date perhaps—and you 
know just where it is in the book. Suppose a chance comes 
just to “peek ” when you know that the teacher won’t see 
you. Do you “peek,” or do you stand firm for the right, 
and do the best that you can do with the ques:ion honestly? 

Conscience is the little voice within us that whispers when 
we are wrong. If we listen to it, it will tell us more and 
more plainly each day what we should do; but if we say, 
“Oh, be quiet, conscience,” and do not listen, it will gradu- 
ally become more and more deadened. But even in the most 
wicked man there is usually a little spark of life in con- 
science, and it sometimes troubles him when he does wrong. 


THE Lesson TRUTH IN YouR LIFE 


Conscience is the little voice within which tells us what 
is right and what is wrong. As the muscles of our bodies 
grow stronger when we use them and as we train them, so 
the voice of conscience grows stronger as we listen to it and 
obey it.. We should listen to the little voice within, and obey 
its teachings, for it is the voice of God speaking to us. 


NoteBook WorK 


Finish the life of Luther which you have begun. Copy 
the hymn, ‘“ A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” and then turn 
to Psalm 46, in your Bible, and on a separate page of your 
notebook, write down the words and phrases which mean 
the same, in the two. For instance, ‘‘ A Mighty Fortress Is 
Our God,” and ‘ God Is Our Refuge,” mean the same thing. 


PONIORSECHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 299 


A Story To READ 


Once there was a very rich man. He owned great fields 
of grain, great orchards, where golden pears and rosy apples 
grew, and vineyards, where the purple grapes ripened plenti- 
fully on the vines. The Master was a generous man. He 
gave fruit and grain to everyone who asked for it. He was 
always glad to give. 

But once upon a time, the Master had to go on a journey 
to a far country. He left the great orchards and grainfields 
and vineyards in the charge of caretakers. And these men, 
as soon as they found themselves in charge of this great 
wealth, decided to profit for themselves. 

“Let us charge the people for this fruit and grain,” they 
said. ‘‘ They should not have it for the asking and because 
they need it. We will make them pay for it, and then we 
shall have the money for ourselves.” 

And this is what they did. Instead of giving the fruit 
and grain to the poor people who came to them, they made 
them feel that the Master was a cruel man, not generous and 
kind, but demanding payment for what they received. They 
did not give the people the messages that he sent to them. 
They sold what he wanted them to give away. They them- 
selves became rich, and more and more hard-hearted. 

And then, at last, a man came to the orchards and fields 
who knew the Master. He had read his messages for him- 
self. He stood up boldly before the people and told them 
that the Master wanted them to take freely of his grain and 
his fruit. He told them that the caretakers were wrong. He 
read to them the Master’s message, though the caretakers 
tried to kill him. And some of the people of the world be- 
lieved him. They took freely of the fruit and of the grain. 
They did not ask the wicked caretakers for it, but read the 
Master’s message for themselves, and knew that it was freely 
offered to them. 

Of course the Master in this story is God, who offers his 
pardon and his grace freely to the people of the world, who 
is always glad to forgive them when they sin. The wicked 
caretakers are the pope and the priests, and the man who 
read-God’s message for himself and told it to the people, was 
Martin Luther. And those who take the fruit and grain 


300 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOUAUESSONS 


freely are the people of the world who read God’s messages 
for themselves in his Word, the Bible, and who go to God 
himself to confess their sins, and to ask for pardon and 
forgiveness. 


THE SCHOOLBOY OF EISENACH 


When Martin Luther was a boy at school at Eisenach, he 
was very poor. It was the custom in those days for the 
schoolboys to sing in the church choirs, and to go from house 
to house, singing, and begging for food or for money. A 
family in Eisenach took a liking to Luther and he became 
a member of their household. The account of this is given 
in an old book, “ The Schénberg-Cotta Family.” 

“Martin Luther . . . the miner’s son is as dear to us as 
one of our own family. . . . He has such a voice, and is so 
religious, and yet so merry withal; at least at times. It was 
his voice and his devout ways which first drew Aunt Ursula’s 
attention to him. She had seen him often at the daily prayers 
at church. He used to sing as a chorister with the boys of 
the Latin school of the parish of St. George. . . . The ring- 
ing tones of his voice, so clear and true, often attracted Aunt 
Ursula’s attention; and he always seemed so devout. But 
we knew little about him. He was very poor, and had a 
pinched, half-starved look when first we noticed him. Often 
I have seen him on the cold winter evenings singing about the 
streets for alms, and thankfully receiving a few pieces of 
broken bread and meat at the doors of the citizens; for he 
was never a bold and impudent beggar as some of the 
scholars are. Our acquaintance with him, however, began 
one day which I remember well. I was at Aunt Ursula’s 
house which is in George Street, near the church and school. 
I had watched the choir of boys singing from door to door 
through the street. No one had given them anything; they 
looked disappointed and hungry. At last they stopped be- 
fore the window where Aunt Ursula and I were sitting with 
her little boy. That clear, high, ringing voice was there 
again. Aunt Ursula went to the door, and called Martin in, 
and then she went herself to the kitchen, and after giving 
him a good meal himself, sent him away with his wallet full, 
and told him to come again very soon. After that, I sup- 
pose, she consulted with Cousin Conrad Cotta, and the re- 


ATINVA VILOO-DYHANOHOS FHL 





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JUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 301 


sult was that Martin Luther became an inmate of their 
house, and has lived among us familiarly since then like one 
of our own cousins.” 


A Hymn VERSE To READ 


“Stand fast for Christ the Saviour! 

He once stood fast for thee, 

And standeth still, and still shall stand 
In all eternity; 

Be faithful, oh, be faithful 
To love so true, so vast 

Stand fast for Christ thy Saviour! 
Stand faithful to the last.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


‘Toba. GLGbA@HiGONSCLE NCE 
I Kings 18 :9-13 
SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We have been studying this week about Martin Luther, 
the man who began the Protestant Reformation by protest- 
ing against the acts of the Roman Catholic Church. Luther 
studied God’s word in the Bible. He felt that God alone 
could forgive man’s sins. He was brave in expressing his 
opinion, and so won the hatred of the Roman Catholic 
Church. He was put out of the Church, but he continued 
to do those things that his conscience told him it was right 
for him todo. We should all follow the example of Luther. 
We should all obey the voice of conscience, and the Word 
of God as it is given to us in the Bible. 


Tue Ciass PRAYER 


“Our Heavenly Father, we thank thee for thy watchful 
care over thy children. Thou hast given us our homes and 
our parents, our schools and our teachers, our friends and 
our plays, and all the wonderful world in which we live. 
Help us to use all thy gifts in the right way. 

“Forgive us that we so often forget thee. We are sorry 
for our thoughtlessness and our unkindness. 


302 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“ Give us strong minds that we may think good thoughts ; 
strong wills that we may resist temptation ; and hearts ready 
to help others. May our class ever do its best, and may 
every member of our school live to please thee. In Jesus’ 
name. Amen.” 


VERSES For USE IN THE MEETING 


Acts) 23:14°24:16%1l" Corinthiansiil212-3-442e mean ee 
Timothy 1:5; II Timothy 1:3; Hebrews 13:18; I Peter 
PAE GS NG, 


Hymns THAT May Br Usep IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“ How Firm a Foundation.” 
“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” 
** All Praise to Thee, Eternal Lord.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


When did Martin Luther live? 
What was the condition of the Church in his day? 
Compare Luther and Bernard. 
How long a time was there between Polycarp and 
Augustine? between Augustine and Bernard? between Ber- 
nard and Luther? 

5. Why is Luther sometimes called “the father of the 
Reformation ”’? 

6. What was the Reformation? 

7. Do you think that you would have been as brave as 
Luther was if you had lived in his day? 


BOND 


Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. Compare Augustine and Luther. 

2. In What Ways Were Polycarp and Luther Alike? 

3. In What Way Was Luther Like the Apostle Peter? 

4. There is an old saying that ‘‘ conscience doth make 
cowards of us all.’ What does this mean? What Made 
Peter and Polycarp and Luther So Brave? 

5. In What Way Can Juniors of To-Day Be Brave? 

6. Do You Always Obey the Voice of Conscience? 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 303 


PARAGRAPHS TO READ IN THE MEETING 


When George Washington was a schoolboy, he wrote in 
his copy book these words: “Look to keep alive in your 
breast that little spark of celestial fire—conscience.”’ 

Conscience is only a little voice, but it has great power. 

God spoke to Elijah in the still small voice. He speaks to 
us in the same way. 

When I do what conscience tells me it is right to do, even 
when I want to do something else, I am obeying God. 

The more I listen to the voice of conscience, the more 
plainly it will speak to me. 


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LATER FOLLOWERS OF THE LORD JESUS 





eae nae XOX 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
WILLIAM CAREY, THE CONSECRATED COBBLER 


Peeisez-4 ello: isan 2 <2 040-8) 54<2'93-e Mark 
Pees) foun 10; Romans 10-14. 715. 


Tue MEmory VERSE 


“Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, 
baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son 
and of the Holy Spirit: teaching them to observe all things 
whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, 
even unto the end of the world.’—Matthew 28:19, 20. 


Tuk Lesson Story 


Over two hundred years had passed since the days of 
Luther. The Reformation which he had begun had spread 
through all Europe. The different churches with which we 
are familiar had begun. Besides the Roman Catholic Church, 
there were now the various Protestant Churches, in which 
the people read the Bible for themselves, and learned God’s 
will for them through the translations into their own lan- 
guages of the Bible made by men who had given their lives 
to this work. 

As yet, however, the members of the Church had not fully 
understood the last words of Jesus, “Go ye into all the 
world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation.” ‘They 
had not begun to take seriously the question of missions, and 
to send out missionaries to foreign lands. In the eighteenth 
century, in England, God led a man to this work. 

Just as Luther has been called “the father of the Refor- 
mation,” William Carey has been called “the father of mis- 
sions.” He was born in Paulerspury, in England, August 
17, 1761. His father was a weaver; he was also the church 


307 


308 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


clerk. Carey was brought up in a religious home and taught 
to read the Bible and to go to church. 

William Carey was a poor boy. He went to work with 
a shoemaker when he was very young. He learned to make 
shoes. When he was eighteen years old, he gave himself 
earnestly to God’s service, and began to preach. His in- 
come as a preacher, however, was very little, less than fifty 
dollars a year, and he had to make shoes, also, to help to 
support his family. Every moment that he could spare he 
studied Hebrew and Greek and Latin. He had a great talent 
for languages. He made a map of the world, and studied 
about the people of the great outside world in every spare 
moment. He began to see that Christ’s command was not 
being carried out, and that the Christian people of the world 
should give God’s message to those who had never had a 
chance to know of him. 

One day in 1789 William Carey was called on to speak at 
a minister’s meeting. He took as his text the words of 
Isaiah’ 54:2,.3, © Enlarge the place, of thy mtent aeeas 
preached: “ Expect great things fron’ God. Attempt great 
things for God.” His sermon made such an impression upon 
those who heard, that before the meeting broke up it was 
resolved to prepare a plan for sending the gospel to the 
heathen. ‘This was the beginning of the first modern mis- 
sionary society. 

Carey offered to go as one of the first missionaries. “I 
will go down into the pit,’ he said, “ but you must hold the 
ropes.” It was decided that the first missionaries should be 
sent to India. Another missionary, John Thomas, was 
found, and he and Carey and their families set out for India. 
After a journey of five months, they arrived in Calcutta in 
November, 1793, and there Carey started to study Bengali, 
one of the languages of India, so that he might be able to 
talk with the people. 

India is a very strange country, as you know, very differ- 
ent from anything that Carey had known in England. ‘The 
people are divided into castes, and the members of one caste 
will have nothing to do with the members of other castes. 
The Brahmans are the highest caste; the “ sweepers,” who 
do the cleaning of the streets and such work, are the lowest 
caste. If the shadow of a sweeper falls upon a Brahman, he 


JUNTOR TGHURCHs SCHOOL LESSONS 309 


has to purify himself by repeated washings. And for a 
Christian to have anything to do with people of the higher 
castes was almost an impossibility in the days of Carey. 

So it was that Carey found great difficulties ahead of him 
in India. He had very little money, and had to take a posi- 
tion in an indigo plantation. Here he worked hard, learning 
the language and translating the New ‘Testament into 
Bengali. Like Luther, he felt that the people should have 
the Bible in their own language. He finished his translation 
of the New Testament, and on the seventh of February, 
1801, it was issued. The first result of this work was that 
people in authority saw what a scholar Carey was, and gave 
to him a position as professor in the government college. 
Here he had many opportunities for teaching and studying. 
He translated the Bible into seven different languages. He 
wrote grammars and textbooks of all sorts. He helped in 
the establishment of forty-five schools where the children of 
poor parents were educated. 

For forty-one years William Carey worked in India. He 
never returned to England. He died in India, June 9, 1834, 
after having done a great work in helping to give the gospel 
to the world. Some one, in mockery, had called him when 
he was a young man in England, “the consecrated cobbler,” 
and by that name he has been called ever since. He was in- 
deed a “consecrated cobbler,” for he gave his life to God 
and to his service. 


HANDWORK 


Make on your sand table a map of India. If you have any 
Indian souvenirs, bring them to class to show to your class- ° 
mates. It would be interesting to make a collection of Indian 
relics. If you can do this, keep the things together, for you 
will have other lessons about India. | 


NotEBook Work 


Begin the life of William Carey, on a new page of your 
notebook. Perhaps you can find a picture of Carey to use as 
an illustration. At least you can find the picture of an 
Indian scene—a pagoda, or an idol, or an elephant, or a 


310 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


tiger, which will remind you of the place in which Carey 
worked. 


Map Work 
Put on the blackboard an outline map of Asia. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


This is the first of a series of lessons about foreign mis- 
sionaries. Don’t you think that it would be interesting to 
plan to send a box to some missionary family? Your 
teacher will help you to plan what to do. Begin right away 
to prepare, and then your box will be ready at the end of 
these lessons. Books and pictures are needed. Interesting 
picture post cards and lesson cards, too, will be acceptable. 


Mermory Work 


Learn the first verse of one of the Junior Memory Work 
Hymns, ‘“ From Greenland’s Icy Mountains ”’: 


“From Greenland’s icy mountains, 
From India’s coral strand, 
Where Africa’s sunny fountains 
Roll down their golden sand, 
From many an ancient river, 
From many a palmy plain, 
They call us to deliver 
Their land from error’s chain.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
HE GOSPE Tal ORGEMEAW ORT ID 
Isaiah 54:2, 3; Acts 1:6-11 
THe Memory VERSE 
“Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the 
whole creation.”—Mark 16:15. 
THe Lesson STorY 


The last words of Jesus before he was taken up into 
heaven were a command to his disciples to be his witnesses 
not only in Jerusalem and in Judea and in Samaria, but in 


JUNTORSCHUR CHES CHOOL LESSONS 311 


the uttermost parts of the earth. It has taken many cen- 
turies to carry out this command. Even now, almost nine- 
teen centuries since Jesus’ ascension, there are many parts 
of the world to which the gospel has not been carried. We 
have studied about several of the important steps in carry- 
ing the gospel. Luther translated the Bible from Latin and 
Greek and Hebrew into German, so that the people of his 
country could read it in their own language. Other men 
translated it into English. William Carey translated it into 
seven of the languages of India. That is one of the greatest 
ways in which the Bible is made known to the people of the 
world, and we find that many missionaries who first go to a 
foreign country do just this thing. Willtam Carey worked 
long and hard in India before he converted one Christian. 
This first man was named Krishnu Pal, and he was baptized 
at the same time that:Carey’s own son, Felix, was baptized. 
Missionaries in India since Carey’s day have had a long, 
hard struggle to make India Christian. There are so many 
strange customs, and it is so hard to reach the people of this 
wonderful land, with its great wealth and wonderful palaces ; 
its jungles full of wild animals, lions and tigers and ele- 
phants; its castes, of which it is said that there are more 
than a hundred thousand; where the ladies of the high 
classes are never allowed to be seen on the street; where the 
poor people live on the merest handful of food each day. 
And yet India has become very civilized in some ways. 
It is strange to know that in this far-away land there are 
factories with smokestacks and electricity and machinery 
just as we have them in our country. One of the great 
cities of India is Cawnpore on the Ganges River. It has an 
electric trolley system, which they call by a word that means 
“lightning.” It has a great cloth factory, where the khaki 
cloth was made for the uniforms of the Indian soldiers who 
fought in the Great War, and a shoe factory where many 
thousands of pairs of shoes for the soldiers were manutac- 
tured. ‘These two factories belong to Englishmen. Is it not 
strange to think that in the India, to which William Carey, 
the consecrated cobbler went, there is now a great shoe 
factory where three thousand men are employed? The 
owner of this factory has built a model village where his 
men and their families live, where they have running water 


312 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


and many sorts of modern comforts. The owner of the 
cloth factory, too, has a model village for his men. 

And yet these people are so many of them heathen! There 
are not missionaries enough to go to them and to tell them of 
the good news of Christ. The mothers have for so long 
been treated so much as if they were slaves that they cannot 
think for a very long period at a time. Their attention 
wanders. They cannot learn. But the missionaries are try- 
ing to train the children. They are the hope of the future. 
They will learn about Christ and in that way the good news 
of the gospel will spread through India. 

And so there is need of schools in India—schools where 
the children learn to love Christ, where they have good food, 
where they learn about Christian ways and Christian man- 
ners, where they learn to live as Christ wants them to live. 
And we can help in this work by our offerings and by our 
prayers, by supporting our missionaries in every way that 
we can. That should be our part in taking the gospel to 
the world. 


Putrtine THEe Lesson INTo. THR LIFE oF THE CLASS 


We Christian Juniors should want to do our share in giv- 
ing the gospel to the world. We should try to help our mis- 
sionaries in every way that we can, by our prayers, by our 
offerings, by our interest. 

Perhaps God wants some of you Juniors to become mis- 
sionaries as you grow up. Think about this. God will direct 
you if you ask him. 

Do you like to study foreign languages? Have you begun 
to study French or German in school? If you have, just 
think as you study these hard vocabularies and try to twist 
your tongue until you can say the queer sentences, that it was 
in learning words like these that William Carey laid the first 
foundations of his great work for the world. 


Tur Lesson [rRutTH IN Your LIFE 


Jesus sent out his followers with the command that they 
should tell the good news of his coming even to the utter- 
most part of the earth. I want to be a good follower ot 
Jesus and to carry out his commands. I will pray to him 





JUNIOR: CHORCH SCHOOL LESSONS 313 


and ask him to show me the way in which he wants me to 
carry his message for him. 


A Story To READ WITH THE LESSON 


“Vishnuswami’s whole family knew that the gods must 
be angry, because they were now so poor and somebody in 
the family was always sick. ‘ Undoubtedly evil spirits sent 
by the outraged idols,’ they said. ‘So they started out on a 
long journey by elephant, to appease the idols. You would 
have thought it a sad sight to see these poor men squander- 
ing their last rupees on dirty sneaking priests. Inside the 
temple doorway they fell on their knees and bent over to 
touch their tulip-turbans to the floor ; then inch by inch they 
crawled on their knees toward the great stone idol at the 
end of the gloomy room, bowing reverently all the time, and 
saying some Hindu words over and over again. But the 
stone idol was as silent as ever; his stone eyes never blinked, 
and his stone hands never moved to touch the rice they laid 
at his feet. They even poured some very expensive ghee 
over him. Ghee is melted butter, a rich present which ought 
to make an idol sit up and take notice; but this one just sat 
on and on—without taking any notice at all. 

“Having done all they could afford to do at this shrine, 
they climbed up on their elephant again and rode to many 
other shrines, where they knelt reverently and said words 
pleading for forgiveness. At one place where the gold leaf 
had been worn off the idol’s hands, where rice had been laid 
by countless people, Vishnuswami’s father bought a little bit 
of gold leaf to cover the bare place, and the priest was de- 
lighted. Only, dear me, just the minute their backs were 
turned he sold the gold leaf back to the goldsmith and used 
the money for himself. At another shrine they gave the 
priests many rupees for a feast, which would surely tickle 
the fancy of the fickle god and make him like the family. 
They crawled on their knees toward ever so many shrines, 
they threw garlands of flowers on the sacred rivers, and did 
all they could possibly think of doing, till all their money 
was gone and they could do nothing more. 

“Hungry and with aching bones, at last they turned the 
elephant homeward. ‘We have made all the sacrifices we 


314 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


can make,’ Vishnuswami’s father said sorrowfully ; ‘ we have 
fasted for days, and cut ourselves with knives; what more 
can the gods want of us?’ 

“* What more, indeed?’ asked the uncles sadly. ‘There 
is nothing more left to give.’ ”’—From “ Friday’s Footprints,” 
by Margaret B. Applegarth. 


THe First VERSE OFA HYMN THAT You CAN SING WITH 
tHE LESSONS OF THE NEx?T FEw WEEKS 


“ Hail the Hero Workers ” (Tune, St. Albans.) 


“ Hail the hero workers of the mighty past! 
They whose labor builded all the things that last. 
Thoughts of wisest meaning; deeds of noblest might; 
Patient toiling weakness; battles in the night; 
Hail, then, noble workers, builders of the past, 
All whose lives have blessed us with the gains that last.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


HOW JUNIORS MAY HELP TO GIVE THE GOSPEL 
TO THE WORLD 


ISeWBH ND SYA key, // 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


Perhaps we feel because we are only Juniors that we can- 
not do very much to help to give the good news of Christ’s 
coming to the people in the world who do not know about 
him. Perhaps what we can do seems very little to us, but, 
with God’s power back of it, that little may become big. All 
that God asks of us is that we do our very best to spread 
the gospel. We can help by prayer. We can help by our 
offerings. We can help by learning all we can about condi- 
tions in foreign lands. Then we shall understand better 
when we hear about needs in India or in China or in Africa. 
Our missionaries would be glad to hear from us, too, and to 
know that we are thinking about them and their work. Let 
us try to keep our eyes and ears open, and help to spread the 
gospel in every way that we can. 


—= SCC 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 315 


THE CrLass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we want everyone in all the world 
to hear the good news of the gospel. Help us to spread the 
good tidings. Help us to carry out the last command of 
Jesus, that his followers should go into all the world, and 
preach the gospel to the whole creation. Help us to see 
places where we may do thy work. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES For USE IN THE MEETING 


Matthew: 28:19" 20" Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8; Malachi 3:1; 
Acts 13:4; 16:9. 


Hymns THAT May Bet USED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“Hushed Was the Evening Hymn.” 

“From Greenland’s Icy Mountains.” 

Any missionary hymns with which the members of the 
class are familiar. 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. How long a time passed between Luther and William 
Carey? 

2. How had the condition of the Church in Europe 
changed in that time? 

3. What had happened in America by 1789, when Carey 
first spoke in the church meeting about foreign missions ? 

4. Tell the story of William Carey. 

5. What can you tell about India from your day-school 
geography? Who are its rulers? 

6. What is meant by a “caste” in India? 

7. How can a Junior help in foreign missions? 


” 


Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. Paul and Foreign Missions. 

2. Foreign Missions in the Middle Ages. (Was Bernard 
interested in foreign missions? What do you remember 
about Raymund Lull?) 

3. The Beginning of Foreign Missions in Modern Times. 


316 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


India and Its Geography. 

India and Its Rulers. 

The Heathen Gods Worshiped in India. 
How Missionaries in India Live To-Day. 


Se ae 


PARAGRAPHS TO READ IN THE MEETING 


William Carey said, “Expect great things from God.” 
That is a great way to accomplish things. God is willing to 
give us great things if we ask him for them. “ Ask, and it 
shall be given you.” 

India is a great country with a population of three hun- 
dred million. We must do all that we can do, to help our 
missionaries to teach the poor people of India. 

The people of India worship horrible idols, who, they 
think, can do them evil if they are displeased with them. 
They have many customs which seem terrible to us. For 
instance, widows were burned to death on the funeral pyres 
of their dead husbands. Girl babies often were not wanted 
in the family, and were thrown into the river. Many of 
these customs have been done away with, through the in- 
fluence of the missionaries. 

The chief gods worshiped in India are Brahma, Vishnu, 
and Siva. Besides these gods there are many others. It is 
said that the Hindus worship three hundred and thirty mil- 
lion gods. 

Little girls in India are married when they are between 
five and ten years of age. If a husband dies, the little girl 
must remain a widow all her life. It is estimated that there 
are twenty-five million widows in India. Of these, probably 
eighty thousand are less than ten years old. 

Women missionaries in India teach the girls and women 
in zenanas, boarding schools, and orphanages. Men mis- 
sionaries preach in the streets or in roadside chapels. They 
establish schools where the Bible is taught. They write and 
translate Christian books. ‘Some of them are doctors and 
heal the sick, and, by caring for their bodies, help them to 
understand Christ’s love for them. 


CHAPTER XXXIV 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
ROBERT MORRISON, THE TRANSLATOR 


Nehemiah 8:5, 6, 8; Psalm 119:18; Isaiah 40:9; Jeremiah 
pies OavelikeelOsLicZeelohn 20:31: 11 Peter 1:21; 


Tue MEMory VERSE 


“ For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven, 
and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh 
it bring forth and bud, and giveth seed to the sower and 
bread to the eater; so shall my word be that goeth forth out 
of my mouth; it shall not return unto me void, but it shall 
accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the 
thing whereto I sent it.”—Isaiah 55:10, 11. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Do you remember studying in your day-school geography 
about the Great Wall of China—that wall which was sup- 
posed to shut off the Chinese Empire from the rest of the 
world? For thousands of years the Chinese really were a 
separate nation, without any contact with the rest of the 
nations of the earth. They lived almost by themselves. The 
wall seems really almost to have cut them off from the rest 
of the world. But little by little the wall was broken down. 
People from other countries were permitted to enter the 
country for purposes of trade. ‘Then missionaries planned 
to try to reach the Chinese, and one of the first of those to 
make a breach in the wall was Robert Morrison, the first 
English missionary to the Chinese, who gave his life to the 
translation of the Bible into their language. 

Robert Morrison, like William Carey, was the son of poor 
parents. He, too, when he was a boy was an apprentice, not 
to a shoemaker, as William Carey was, but to a man who 
made lasts, that is, the molds upon which boots and shoes 


317 


318 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOLALESSONS 


were shaped. So, you see, we have already two points in 
which these two great missionaries were alike. Both were 
poor; both learned a trade connected with the making of 
boots and shoes. 

Morrison was born on the fifth of January, 1782, at 
Morpeth in Northumberland, England. He had _ seven 
brothers and sisters older than himself. His parents were 
earnest Christians, leving and tender to their children, who 
were brought up to go regularly to church and to keep the 
Sabbath. Even as a boy Robert had a most wonderful 
memory. When he was only thirteen years old he was able 
to recite the one hundred and seventy-six verses of Psalm 
119 without a mistake. If you will look up Psalm 119 in 
your Bibles, you will see what a task this was. 

When Robert was fifteen, he joined the church of which 
his father was an elder. He worked in the last-maker’s shop 
from six o’clock in the morning until six o'clock at night, 
but he found time to study so hard that he was able after 
eighteen months of preparation to enter Hoxton Academy. 
There he decided to become a missionary and in 1804, when 
he was twenty-two years old, he was accepted by the London 
Missionary Society as a student in their school for mission- 
aries. Here he studied, devoting much time to the study of 
Chinese, taking lessons from a native Chinaman. He also 
copied a manuscript Latin-Chinese dictionary which was in 
the British Museum, and part of a translation of the New 
Testament into Chinese. 

In 1807 he was ordained, and it was planned that he 
should go to China. But there were difficulties in the way. 
The only vessels by which he could go from England to 
China were under the control of the East India Company. 
This company thought that missionaries interfered with their 
business. They refused passage to Morrison. At last he 
went to New York, hoping to find a way to go to China from 
there. ‘This he succeeded in doing, and in May, 1807, he 
set sail on the long voyage of almost four months, to China. 

But that was only the beginning of his troubles. When 
he reached China he found the Chinese unfriendly and the 
English business men, too, unfriendly. He had to live very 
quietly at first, dressing in Chinese costume, living in a 
“ ¢o-down,” or room partially underground. In every way 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 319 


he tried to avoid attention. All the time he worked and 
studied, trying to learn the difficult Chinese language with its 
thousands of queer characters painted with a brush or drawn 
with a queer-shaped pen; talking with the Chinese when- 
ever he had a chance. And in learning Chinese, Morrison’s 
wonderful memory, which had helped him to learn all that 
long One Hundred and Nineteenth Psalm when he was thir- 
teen years old, stood him in great stead.. He soon became 
quite noted for his knowledge of Chinese. The East India 
Company made him their official interpreter with a comfort- 
able salary. He was allowed to go on with his work with- 
out interference. God had opened the way for his servant 
to do his will and to help on the work of giving the Bible to 
the whole world. 


HANDWORK 


Put upon the blackboard a map of China. See if you can 
find out in the dictionary or in your day-school geography 
how many miles in area it covers and how great the popu- 
lation is. Find out these same facts about the United States. 
Write them on the board and compare the United States and 
China, in order to show how great the work was which Mor- 
rison alone, was setting out to do. 

Model upon the sand table a relief map of China. Show 
the great wall, as you imagine it to be. 


NotTeEBooK WorRK 


Give in your notebook a short account of the life of 
Robert Morrison. Illustrate it with some small pictures of 
China, if you can find these. 


Map Work 


Put on the blackboard a map of the world. Then show 
how Morrison had to travel in his journey to China—from 
England to New York, from New York down the coast of 
the United States and South America, around Cape Horn, 
and across the Pacific Ocean. Show how he might have 
gone directly from England. 


320 JUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOL WWEHSSONG 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


There are so many children in China who know nothing 
about Jesus and his teachings. Perhaps your teacher will 
give you a plan for helping in some of the schools where 
missionaries are teaching the Chinese girls and boys. Do 
you happen to know any Chinese children? Ask them to 
come to class with you some day, and tell you something 
about their homeland. Perhaps you can write a letter to 
some missionary in whom your church is interested. 


Memory Work 


The second verse of “ From Greenland’s Icy Mountains.” 


“What though the spicy breezes 

Blow soft o’er Ceylon’s isle; 

Though every prospect pleases, 
And only man is vile: 

In vain with lavish kindness 
The gifts of God are strown; 

The heathen in his blindness 
Bows down to wood and stone.” 





SUNDAY SESSION 
MAKING THE FIRST CHINESE BIBLE 
Psalm 1977-11 


THE Memory VERSE 


‘Lo, these shall come from far; and, lo, these from the 
north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.” 
—Isaiah 49:12, 


Tue Lesson Story 


When Robert Morrison had been in China for about five 
years, the government decreed that any foreigner who issued 
a book about the Christian religion in China would be put 
to death. But Robert Morrison did not obey the decree for 
a minute. He went right on with his work of translating, 
He was like Polycarp or Luther or Carey. He knew that 


—_s © 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 321 


he was doing what God wanted him to do. He continued 
his work bravely. 

For twenty-seven years he worked in China. He wrote 
a Chinese-English dictionary in fifteen volumes. With the 
help of Dr. Milne, who came out from England to China, he 
translated the Bible into Chinese. He himself translated 
thirty-nine books of the sixty-six books of the Bible. ‘This 
was a tremendous amount of work. How vould you like 
to write a dictionary? How would you like to learn a new 
language so thoroughly that you could translate the Bible 
into that language? And remember, that when Morrison 
translated the Bible he had to be exact. He wanted the 
Chinese to know what God’s Word really said. He could 
not be careless and say, “Oh, that is close enough to the 
meaning.” He had to have everything just as nearly per- 
fect as he could make it. 

But besides the actual translation, Morrison superintended 
the printing of his dictionary and the Bible. First the type 
had to be made. ‘This was all cut by hand with chisels on 
small blocks of tin or type metal cast in suitable sizes. They 
had 25,000 characters to make and in all made about 100,000 
separate types of two sizes. He had to manage the printing 
presses. In 1819 the Bible was finished, and the dictionary 
was completed in November, 1823, at an expense of sixty 
thousand dollars for 700 copies. For this the East India 
Company paid. 

Robert Morrison lived in China for twenty-seven years. 
In that time he had, directly, only about twenty-five con- 
verts. But the work which he did in translating the Bible 
and giving it to the Chinese went on and on. Many hun- 
dreds of thousands of Chinese became acquainted with 
God’s Word through his work, and many became followers 
of Christ through reading the Bible in their own language. 

Morrison died in 1834, when he was fifty-two years old. 
He was buried in the island of Macao, where he had lived 
during a great part of the time that he had been in China. 
His work laid the foundation for much of the work of the 
missionaries who have taught and preached in China since 
his day. He had done as so many of the earlier missionaries 
had to do—worked hard for Christ, without seeing many 
converts. But the seed that they sowed was good and in- 


322 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


creased sixty and a hundredfold, so that at last there will be 
a plentiful harvest. 


PutTtInG THE Lesson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Chinese boys or Chinese girls are human beings just as 
you are. They eat and drink and sleep as you do. They 
suffer from pain and illness; they are happy or sad, just as 
you are. So you can understand what good things the com- 
ing of Christianity has brought to them. If you are a girl 
eleven years old, perhaps you wear a number two shoe. 
Don’t you think it would hurt if you had to wear a shoe 
three inches long, such as your little sister wears? ‘That is 
what many little Chinese girls have had to do, for in China 
they would bind their little girls’ feet to keep them small, in- 
stead of letting them grow as you do, so that you can walk 
straight and well, as God intended you to do. And the feet 
of the little Chinese girls are flesh and blood and bone and 
muscle just as yours are, and they hurt just as your feet 
would hurt under the same conditions. That is one thing 
that Christianity has helped to do away with in China. 

If you were a boy in many parts of China you would have 
to wear your hair in a queue. You would worship your 
ancestors, and you couldn’t do anything that they wouldn’t 
approve of. Suppose you were ill and your father and 
mother took you to the doctor. He wouldn’t give you medi- 
cine to cure you—perhaps it’s bitter, but an American doctor 
knows what is good for you—but he would do something 
else to you. He certainly would! He would tell you all that 
“certain kinds of pain came because evil spirits had hopped 
inside you, and the best way was to prick you with a nice 
long needle so that they could slip out through the hole.” 
When you went to his office you would find that “he had a 
sort of pincushion doll, bristling with great long needles, to 
advertise the places where he could punch you without kill- 
ing you. Hardly a day passed without his trying a needle 
on somebody, although he had to admit that during his long 
life patients had not recovered quite as he had hoped under 
these prickings. For instance, there was the old lady who 
could not see well, and he said all she needed was a hole to 
let in more light, so he punched her eyeball for her ; but since 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 323 


then, alas, she had not been able to see at all and had suffered 
agonies. It was most unfortunate, but he had done the best 
he knew, and it was what every doctor in China had done 
for two thousand years, so why worry?” 


THE Lesson TRuTH IN Your LIFE 


Robert Morrison spent his life in trying to do what he 
could do to give God’s Word to the people of China. I want 
to do my share, in helping the poor idol worshipers who do 
not know of the true God. One of the ways in which I can 
help now is in laying a good foundation for my future work, 
by doing my everyday duties well and studying hard as 
Robert Morrison did. I can pray for our missionaries. I 
can give an offering to help in their work. I will do my best 
in all these things. 


NoteBook Work 


Finish the life of Robert Morrison which you began in 
your Week Day Session. 


Wuat Our GoLDEN TExt MEANS 


Did you know that some people think that the Bible refers 
to the land of China, which it calls “ Sinim”? The prophet 
Isaiah speaks of those who shall believe in God, and says 
that they shall come from far—from the north and from 
the west and from the land of Sinim. It will not seem so 
strange to you to think that Isaiah knew something about 
China, if you look at the map of Asia. He certainly knew 
about Assyria and Babylonia, and China is not very much 
farther. It is known from Chinese records that Chinese mer- 
chants visited foreign lands as early as the twelfth century 
B. C., and that foreign merchants entered China as early as 
the tenth century. Porcelain ware with Chinese letters has 
been found in Thebes, in Egypt ; and there is a Chinese story 
that many centuries before Christ an envoy arrived from a 
foreign country bringing as a present a tortoise bearing on its 
back an inscription written in strange characters like tad- 
poles, telling the world’s history since the Creation. Later a 
second embassy of people wearing long trailing robes came, 


324 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


and it took them a whole year to return to their country. The 
letters like tadpoles suggest the writing of the Assyrians and 
the Babylonians and these people, too, wore long robes. It 
is quite certain that at the time of the Exile some of the 
Jews went to China. So it would not be strange if, in 
Isaiah’s prophecy, “ Sinim” did mean China. It would be 
only another proof of how wonderfully God brings to pass 
the words which he told his prophets to speak, hundreds of 
years ago. 


A VERSE TO USE IN CONNECTION WITH THE LESSON 


“ Hail ye, hero workers, who to-day do hear 
Duty’s myriad voices sounding high and clear; 
Ye who quick responding, haste ye to yous task, 
Be it grand or simple, ye forget to ask! 
Hail ye, noble workers, builders of to-day, 
Whose lives treasurers gather that shall last always.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
GIVING THE BIBLE TO THE WORLD*1TO:DAY 
Nehemiah 8:5-8; Habbakuk 2:14. 


U IONS FOR THE HEADER PENIN DDRES 
SUGGEST FOR THE LEADER’S OPE c ADDRESS 


We Juniors who live in Christian America cannot be 

grateful enough that we live in a Christian land, where we 
have Christian fathers and mothers and doctors; Christian 
schools and hospitals; Christian customs of all sorts. Do 
you realize that if we had lived in a heathen land before 
Christianity came we should have no hospitals, no public 
schools, no churches? In those lands girls are almost slaves ; 
people who do not belong to rich and noble families have no 
chance to rise ; they must be just what their fathers and their 
grandfathers before them were. 
_ Because we have so many blessings which the boys and 
girls in heathen lands do not have, we want to help them in 
every way that we can. One of the ways to help is to learn 
all that we can about missions. ‘Then when the chance 
comes, we will understand what we ought to do. 





JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 325 


THE Crass PRAYER 


Our heavenly Father, we want to help in the work of 
spreading the knowledge of thee until it shall cover the 
whole earth as the waters cover the sea. Show us ways to 
help, we ask thee; make us able to see those things which 
we can do in spreading the gospel to the far-distant parts of 
the world. We ask for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Matthew 28:19, 20; Mark 16:15; Psalm 119:105; Isaiah 
11:9; Colossians 1:9, 10. 


Hymns THAT May Bk UseED IN ConNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“We Plow the Fields, and Scatter.” 

“From the Eastern Mountains.” 

“Jesus Shall Reign Wher’er the Sun.” 

“O Zion, Haste, Thy Mission High Fulfilling.” 
“They Are Coming, They Are Coming.” 
Call bhem In” 

Any other missionary hymns you may know. 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. Compare the geographical position of China, where 
Robert Morrison worked, and India where William Carey 
was missionary. 

Compare the work of Carey and of Morrison. 

When was Morrison born? When did he die? 

What can you tell about the geography of China? 
Tell the story of Morrison’s journey to China. 

What difficulties did he have there? 

Tell what you know about the first Chinese Bible. 

. Tell what you know about Morrison’s Chinese-English 
dictionary. 


ON AWA 


Topics FOR DIscUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. Notebook Life of Morrison. 
2. China in the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century. 


326 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


China as It Is To-Day. 
The American Bible Society. 
China and the Bible. 
The Religion of China. 
Who the Boxers Are, and What They Did at the Be- 
ginning of the Twentieth Century. 
8. What a Junior Can Do to Help China. 
9. What a JuniorDepartment Can Do to Help China. 
10 How Long It Would Take Me to Learn Psalm 119. 


NOEL 


PARAGRAPHS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


3) 


The word “ missions’ comes from the Latin word that 
means “send.” Soa missionary is one who is sent out. We 
Christians in the United States should help in sending out 
those who will tell heathen people of God’s love for every- 
*one in the world. 

When Morrison was waiting in New York for his ship to 
sail to China, a man sneeringly said to him, “ So you expect 
to make an impression on the great Chinese Empire, do 
you?” “No sir,” Morrison replied, “but I expect God to 
do so.” And God did. 

A little Chinese girl tells her story: 

“One day at home I tossed and tossed on my mat on the 
floor, for I was very, very sick. All around me there were 
people quarreling and speaking in harsh, loud voices; there 
was my grandmother and my mother and my sisters and my 
aunts, and the neighbor’s mother, and the neighbor’s chil- 
dren, and my father, gambling in a corner, and a cat and 
two dogs fighting, and everyone said I was dying, but did not 
seem to care. Whenever my mother seemed a little bit 
anxious, every one would say: ‘Oh, never mind if she dies, 
she is only a girl!’ Then suddenly I fell asleep and I had 
a beautiful dream. 

“T was in a wonderful place, a place where everything 
was clean, no cobwebs on the walls, no dirt on the windows; 
and everything was quiet, no more angry voices, and I 
looked about me, and I was in a big, light room. Along the 
walls there were other beds than mine, strange beds such as 
I had never seen, with clean, white sheets and soft mat- 
tresses. Other children were in the beds, little girls as well 


. 


Ten ORACOUURCHeSCHOOL LESSONS 327 


as little boys, and they all had happy smiles. A lady in white 
came to me and took care of me, and she was so lovely that 
I asked her where I was. Lo, my dream was not a dream! 
Listen, American boys and girls, I was in your hospital at 
Ichowfu in the children’s ward, and we little Chinese were 
being taken care of with your gifts. We lived because of 
you.”—The Missionary Mail, 


GETS ROW DGKe\G 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
ADONIRAM JUDSON, A MISSIONARY PIONEER 


Isaiah 6:8; 53 :3-9; Matthew 10:25a; I Gorinthianselioso7 
98; II Corinthians 4:17; Ephesians 6:13-17; Philippians 
A 13. 


Tuer MEMorY VERSE 


“Take thy part in suffering hardship with me, as a good 
soldier of Christ Jesus.”—II Timothy 2:3 (margin). 


THe LEsson SToRY 


Six years after Robert Morrison was born in England, 
Adoniram Judson, the boy who was to be the first American 
missionary to Burma, was born in Malden, Massachusetts, 
August 9, 1788. 

Can you imagine a little lad of three years old, lying on 
the floor in the study of his father’s house, reading the 
Bible? That is almost the first thing that we hear about 
Adoniram Judson. It is easier to think of him as preaching 
to his sister when he was four years old, for of course he 
had heard many sermons—his father was a minister—even 
before he understood what they meant. When he was in his 
sixteenth year he entered Brown University, and when he 
was nineteen he was graduated with the highest honors. But 
it was not until he was twenty-one years old, in 1809, that 
he decided to become a missionary. 

With Judson in college there were four young men who 
were particularly thoughtful about and interested in religious 
matters. One day in 1806, when they were in Williams Col- 
-lege, before they went to Brown, these young men had taken 
refuge from a thunderstorm, under a haystack. They were 
talking of religious things. “They wondered how they could 
help to win the world for Christ. ‘Then and there they 


328 


JUNLORCCHURCHISCHOOL LESSONS 329 


pledged themselves to the work of missions, and from this 
“haystack prayer meeting,’ great results followed. Judson 
was not with these young men at this time, but later he 
joined them, and became one of the group. 

So it came about that in 1812, Adoniram Judson and his 
wife, Ann Hasseltine Judson, were sent out to India as mis- 
sionaries. ‘They reached Calcutta after a journey of more 
than four months, but were not allowed to settle there by 
the East India Company which was still an enemy to mis- 
sionary workers. And so the brave young people went to 
Rangoon in Burma and took up work there. 

If you look up the country of Burma on your map you 
will find that nowadays it is the eastern province of British 
India, and is ruled by the English. But in the days of Jud- 
son, it was under a native ruler who was a cruel tyrant. 

Burma is a country which is very much like India in 
climate. It is over one thousand miles long, thirty or forty 
miles wide in the south, and five hundred and fifty miles 
wide in the north. ‘There are three principal rivers which 
run south—the Irrawady, the Sittand, and the Salwin. The 
largest of these is the Irrawady. The southern part of the 
country is very low. In the rainy season, which lasts from 
July through September, it is completely under water, which 
is from one to twelve feet deep. For this reason the houses 
are built on piles, and during the rainy season the people go 
about in boats. | 

The Burmans are stout, active, and well-proportioned. 
Their skins are brown, and they have a great deal of dark, 
coarse hair. In disposition they are so lively that they are 
often called “the Irishmen of the East.” They are much 
freer than the Hindus, and the women are better at business 
than the men are. 

Burma is a rich country, for it has great mines of rubies, 
jade, and tin. One of the chief cities is Rangoon. In the 
days when the Judsons landed there in 1813, it had a popu- 
lation of many thousands. It was the government city of a 
ereat province, ruled by a viceroy. ‘Two miles north of the 
city there was a tall, glittering structure, decorated with 
queer golden ornaments. This was the Rangoon pagoda, or 
temple of Buddha. Many people came in boats on the river 
from long distances, to worship Buddha at this shrine. This 


330 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


made the city of Rangoon second to the royal city of Ava in 
importance. Because of its situation of the great river 
Irrawady, it later became one of the chief ports of the 
OO) ierits 

As soon as they arrived in Burma Adonizam and Ann 
Judson began the work of learning the language of the Bur- 
mese people. For ten years they worked in Rangoon. Then 
Mr. Judson and his associate, Dr. Price, went to Ava, the 
capital of the country, to establish a church there. At first 
they were well received, for Dr. Price was a physician, and 
was of service to the king. They were granted a plot of 
ground on which to build a mission. Everything seemed 
favorable. 

And then war broke out between Burma and England. 
All foreigners were suspected of being enemies. Judson- 
was thrown into prison mainly because he wore a hat! And 
Dr. Price, too, was put in prison as a spy. There they were 
kept for almost two years. 

The prison was a terrible place. Nearly a hundred pris- 
oners were crowded into a room about thirty feet wide by 
forty feet long. The walls were only five or six feet high. 
There were no windows and only one door. For nine months 
Judson wore three pairs of iron fetters, and later he was 
forced to wear five pairs. At night a bamboo pole was 
passed between the prisoners’ feet, and then raised so that 
only their heads and shoulders rested on the floor. Each 
day at three o’clock a gong sounded and the state execu- 
tioner entered to take away those who were to die that day. 
It would be impossible to imagine anything more horrible 
than that prison! And Mr. Judson, besides the suffering 
which came from his surroundings, had a fever, so that he 
must have undergone torture. 

Two things sustained him—the love of God and the love 
of his wife. Brave Ann Judson walked almost every day 
five miles from her home to the prison, carrying their little 
baby, Maria, and taking comforts and food to her husband. 
She was so gentle that she won the heart of the jailer, who 
moved her husband from the common prison to a place less 
horrible—the disused cage of a lion! And God’s love, too, 
helped Judson in his suffering. He preached and taught even 
in prison. He never lost his faith. 


Peete CoURCHesSCHOOI LESSONS 331 


Finally, through Ann Judson’s pleadings, the husband was 
released. The war was over. He was sent for to go to the 
court as an interpreter in helping to make a new treaty be- 
tween England and Burma. While he was doing this, his 
brave wife died. Later Judson went to Maulmain where 
there was another mission station. ‘There he worked for 
many years, helping to give the Word of God to the people 
of Burma. 


HANDWORK 


Draw a map of Burma on the blackboard, locating Ran- 
goon, Maulmain, and Ava, places which are connected with 
the work of the Judsons. 


NotTEBooK WorK 


Begin a sketch of the life of Adoniram Judson in your 
notebook. Perhaps you can find a picture of Burma to use 
as an illustration. If you cannot do this, copy a little map of 
the Malay Peninsula to remind you that it was here that 
Judson taught and worked. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Suppose that this week you write a letter to some mis- 
sionary in whom your church is interested. Be sure to con- 
tinue your collection of materials to use in the missionary 
box. 


Memory Work 
Learn the third verse of the Memory Hymn: 


“Can we, whose souls are lighted 
With wisdom from on high, 
Can we to men benighted 
The lamp of life deny? 


“ Salvation! O salvation! 
The joyful sound proclaim, 
Till each remotest nation 
Has learned Messiah’s name.” 


S02 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


A Book To READ 


If you care to learn more about Burma and the Judsons, 
you will find a most interesting account in “ Ann of Ava,” 
by Ethel Daniels Hubbard. The “ Ann” of the title is Ann 
Hasseltine Judson. 


& 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE BIBLE WHICH WAS HIDDEN -AIN ASPIRE wy 
Acts 2:1-11 
THE MrEMory VERSE 


“And how hear we, every man in our own language 
wherein we were born? ”—Acts 2:8. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Adoniram Judson was in prison. Poor Ann Hasseltine 
Judson—Ann of Ava—walked miles and miles each day 
from her home to the prison, from the prison back to her 
home, with her tiny baby, Maria, in her arms. It must have 
seemed sometimes that all their work and suffering were 
wasted. 

Judson, like the other missionaries about whom we have 
studied, had found that one of the best ways to reach heathen 
people and to teach them about our heavenly Father was to 
translate the Bible into their own language. So he began to 
translate the Bible into Burmese. That translation, on which 
he had worked for ten years, was one of his most valued 
possessions. He had taken it to prison with him—a little, 
hard roll of paper. Mrs. Judson felt that it must be saved. 
She was very clever. She hid the translation in the safest 
kind of place—his pillow. But of course that was the very 
thing that the jailer wanted. And of course he took it. So 
the next day Mrs. Judson brought a better pillow, and the 
jailer was more than willing to exchange. 

Mr. Judson spent eleven months in Ava prison. ‘Then he 
was taken to a second prison at Aung-Pen-La. As the pris- 
oners were leaving Ava, a guard saw the pillow and wanted 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 333 


the matting cover. He pulled it off, and carelessly threw 
the stuffing away, not imagining that the roll was the most 
precious part of the pillow. 

Poor Mr. Judson must have felt that ten years of work 
had been lost in a moment’s time, but God did not allow this 
to happen. Moung Ing, a faithful servant of the Judsons, 
saw the cotton stuffing of the pillow carelessly dropped near 
the prison. He knew that it was the treasured possession 
of his kind master, and he saved it in memory of him. You 
can imagine the Judsons’ joy later, when they discovered that 
their treasure was safe. 

But we know that Adoniram Judson was at last freed 
from prison, and eight years after this, he finished his trans- 
lation of the Bible into Burmese. Before his death, he saw 
more than seven thousand Christians in Burma. He died in 
1850, while he was on a sea voyage, when he was sixty-two 
years old. He had taught in Burma since 1813—thirty- 
seven years. The work that he had done was tremendous. 
There are churches in his memory in Burma. There is a 
Judson Memorial Church in New York City, and in the 
church in Malden, Massachusetts, from which he and Ann 
Hasseltine Judson set out, there is a tablet with the follow- 
ing words: 


“ In Memoriam 
REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON 


Born August 9, 1788 
Died April 12, 1850 
Malden His Birthplace 
The Ocean His Sepulcher 
Converted Burmans 
and 
The Burmese Bible 
His Monument 
His Record Is on High.” 


Though a hundred years have passed since the days when 
Judson was in prison, his translation of the Bible is still 
used. It is said to be to the people of Burma what Luther’s 
Bible is to the Germans, and what the King James Version 


334 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


is to those who speak English. And nowadays in Rangoon 
there is a well-equipped printing establishment, where two 
hundred men and women are employed, printing Bibles and 
schoolbooks and other Bible literature. ‘There is also in 
Rangoon a Christian college with more than one thousand 
students, and one hundred and fifty-eight organized churches 
with a membership of nearly ten thousand. 

So Adoniram Judson’s work goes on and on. The seed 
was sown; the harvest has been great. He planted and 
others watered, “but God giveth the harvest.” 


Purtinc THE LkEsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


The young men who, during a thunderstorm, took refuge 
under a haystack, and held what has been called “ the hay- 
stack prayer meeting,” had no idea of the great work which 
they were beginning. ‘They planted a little acorn, from 
which a great oak grew. Perhaps you think that what you 
can do for good is very little. Do it, just the same. God 
can, and may, make something great come from your at- 
tempt. “Expect great things from God. Attempt great 
things for God.” That was William Carey’s motto, and it is. 
a good motto for all of us. 

God preserves his Word. He saved Adoniram Judson’s 
translation of the Burmese Bible as he saved the “ Law ” for 
the Jews, which was lost amid the rubbish of the Temple for 
many years, II Kings 22:8-11. Do you think that if every 
copy of the Bible in‘the world were destroyed, it could be put 
together again from quotations in other books? Do you 
think that it could be put together again from the verses 
which people have stored up in their memories? 

One way of having the Bible always with you is to have 
it stored up in your memory. 


Tur Lesson TRuTH IN Your LIFE 


The Bible is the most valuable Book in the world. It can 
never be really lost from the world, but I can lose it, if I 
neglect to read it. I will try to keep it safe. I wi!l not lose 
it. I will learn as much of it as I can learn. I will remem- 
ber that through it, God speaks to me. 


PUONTOReCHURGH. SCHOOL LESSONS 335 


How Two Kincs Hkarp Gop’s Worp 


Read in your Bibles the story of the way in which King 
Jehoiakim heard the Word of God when it was read to him 
by Baruch the scribe. Jeremiah, chapter 36. Then read the 
following account from “ Ann of Ava” of the way in which 
the king of Burma heard the Word of God: 

“Mrs. Judson pictured the missionaries’ reception at the 
court of Ava, the splendor of the royal palace, vast and 
golden, and the proud, disdainful young monarch, with his 
rich, Oriental garb and gold-sheathed sword, and his com- 
manding eye; before him the American teachers, her hus- 
band and Mr. Colman, kneeling and humbly proffering their 
petition for freedom to preach Christ’s gospel to the Burmese 
Peoplemeeltauwase ar dtatiaticnimoment, ....)At dfirst. Eis 
Majesty listened somewhat attentively and then reread the 
petition, handing it back without a word. Breathlessly the 
two missionaries waited as he took the tract, beautifully 
printed for his benefit, from the hand of his minister of 
state, and read the first two sentences which assert there is 
but one eternal God, when, with supreme indifference, he 
flung it to the ground, thus deciding their fate. Two cutting 
sentences pronounced by the minister finally blasted their 
hopes: ‘In regard to the objects of your petition, His 
Majesty gives no order. In regard to your sacred books, 
His Majesty has no use for them, take them away.’ Then 
followed the ignominious retreat from the palace grounds 
and down the river to Rangoon to the solace of home and a 
few loyal friends.” 

But there is a sequel to this story. Forty years later the 
son of this king, who had in turn become king of Burma, 
sent for a missionary named Dr. Marks, and asked him for 
Bibles to distribute in his country. The rest of the story is 
told in “ Lamplighters Across the Sea.” “ Dr. Marks took 
with him a copy of Mr. Judson’s Burman Bible, beautifully 
covered with gold by the British and Foreign Bible Society 
in London. Wouldn’t you like to have seen this magnificent 
king accepting the gleaming Book with pleased smiles? Then 
I know that you would like to have gone to the school which 
the king built for Dr. Marks! For the king sent nine of his 
sons to it—imagine what a commotion it must have caused 


336 JUNIOR CHURCH $CHOOL LESSONS 


every morning when nine gorgeous princes, sitting on nine 
proud elephants, with eighteen gold umbrellas, drew up to 
the school door, with four hundred soldiers for escort! ”’ 

So you see that Adoniram Judson’s work has paid. His 
translating of the Bible is doing the work that he prayed that 
it would do. God has blessed it, as he has blessed the work 
of his Christian soldiers of all time. 


A Hymn VERSE To USE IN CONNECTION WITH THE LESSON 


“ Hail ye, hero workers, ye who yet shall come, 
When to this world’s calling all our lips are dumb! 
Ye shall build more nobly if our work be true 
As we pass life’s treasure on from old to new. 

Hail ye, then, all workers, of all lands and time, 
Our brave band of heroes with one task sublime.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


ENDURING HARDSHIPS ASA CHRIS iE 
SOLDIER 


II Timothy 2:3, 4, 11-13 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We Juniors here in a Christian land do not have to endure 
hardships as Judson did. We do not have to live in a for- 
eign country, or to go to prison and wear five pairs of fetters 
as Judson did. We really do not know what hardships are. 
And yet I suppose that there are some of us who complain 
about our little troubles, who think that we are badly treated 
when we really have nothing at all to complain about. We 
have comfortable beds at home; we do not have to hang by 
our feet at night, as Judson had to do. We complain be- 
cause we do not have exactly what we like to eat; Judson 
did not have food that was half so good. So, if you feel like 
complaining about anything, just think how well off you are 
in comparison with some other people—and stop. Our sol- 
diers in the Great War endured hunger and thirst and lack 
of sleep, as American soldiers. Just so Judson endured liy- 
ing in a foreign land and imprisonment and hunger and 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 337 


thirst, as a Christian soldier. Should we not endure for 
Christ’s sake, as much as our soldiers endure for their love 
of our country? Let us remember this, and be brave when 
troubles come to us. 


Tuer CriAss PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we know that thou wilt help us 
every day to show our courage, 1f we ask thee, in the little 
things as well as in the big things. Help us to be brave not 
only in time of great danger, but also in the life of every 
day, when we are called on to do the little things which we 
know we ought to do, but which seem hard for us. Help us 
to have courage as the missionaries have, and to be brave in 
our way, as they are brave in their way. For Jesus’ sake. 
Amen. . 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


Ephesians 6:11-13; II Corinthians 6:7; Romans 11:22; 
Pealmset13:6% 124 -Isaiahi9:63))udges 7 :20, 21. 


Hymns tTHat May Br USsEpD IN CoNNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“Fight the Good Fight.” 

“ Soldiers of Christ, Arise.” 

“ Stand Fast for Christ Thy Saviour.” 
Sarda p Potanda pore ess. : 

“ Who Is on the Lord’s Side? ”’ 

“Am Ia Soldier of the Cross?” 

“We March, We March to Victory.” 

“ Onward, Christian Soldiers.” 

“Stand Up, My Soul; Shake Off Thy Fears.” 
“ Awake, My Soul, Stretch Every Nerve.” 


QuESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. What do you know about the boyhood of Adoniram 
Judson? 

2. What do you know about the “ haystack prayer meet- 
ing’? 

5. What was the name of Judson’s first wife? 


338 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


4. What can you tell about Burma in 1813? to-day? 

5. What can you tell about life in Burma? 

6. How can a Junior help to give God’s Word to the 
world? 

7. How cana Junior best get ready to help to give God’s 
Word to the world? 

8. Into how many languages has the Bible been trans- 
lated? (You will find the answer to this question on this 


page. ) 


Topics FOR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. The Land of Burma and Its People. 

2. ‘The Hardships Which Adoniram Judson Bore for the 
Sake of the Heathen. 

3. How a Junior Can Be’a Christian Soldier. 

4. Giving the Word of God to the World. 

5. The Colporteur, or the Man Who Distributes Bibles 
in Foreign Lands. | 

6. Compare the Work of Carey, of Morrison, and of 
Judson. 

7. The Work of the Bible Societies. 


PARAGRAPHS TO READ DuRING THE MEETING 


Missionaries who go out into the world to give God’s 
Word to the heathen are soldiers of peace. They are trying 
to conquer the world for Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. 

The men who distribute the Bible among the heathen of 
foreign lands often have to endure hardships as true Chris- 
tian soldiers. 

If earnest seekers after God read his Word in a language 
that they can understand, they will surely find him. 

The complete Bible has been translated into one hundred 
and fifty languages, and the New Testament into one hun- 
dred and thirty-one. Parts of the Bible have been put into 
four hundred and twenty-eight more. 

In many languages there is but a single book of the Bible. 

The missionaries to foreign lands help to cure the bodies 
of those who are sick, but their greatest work is taking to 
them the good tidings of Jesus Christ. 





OEP ERs Xoox Vf 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
LEE BOOK SO UGE 


I Chronicles 16:8-10; Psalm 119:105, 130; Proverbs 8:17; 
Jeremiah 42:3; Matthew 2:1-3; John 8:12; 12:36. 


Tur MEmory VERSE 


“ Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteous- 
ness: for they shall be filled.” —Matthew 5:6. 


‘THE Lesson SToRY 


Adoniram Judson went out from the United States as a 
foreign missionary to Burma, in the year 1812—the year of 
the second war between the United States and Great Britain. 
But even in those days there were parts of the United States 
that needed the gospel as greatly as Burma or China, or 
India needed it. 

In those days the United States owned great territories 
about which almost nothing was known, which had been ob- 
tained by the Louisiana Purchase, made during the time 
when Thomas Jefferson was President of the United States. 
This district, of which the states of Oregon, Idaho, and 
Washington were a part, was almost unexplored by white 
men. ‘Tribes of Indians who knew nothing about the true 
God wandered through the country, and made their homes 
in its vast forests. 

In 1804 President Jefferson had sent out a party of ex- 
plorers under the leadership of Captain Meriwether Lewis 
and Captain William Clark. This expedition, known as 
“The Lewis and Clark Expedition,” passed through the 
country which now forms part of Missouri, Kansas, Ne- 
braska, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and 
Oregon. ‘hey spent two years in this expedition. For a 


339 


340 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


whole month they stayed with a tribe of kindly Indians in 
the Kamiah Valley, in Idaho. These Indians were not 
wicked savages. ‘They were more civilized than the other 
tribes of the district. They wore garments of skin. Because 
they often decorated themselves with bits of wampum placed 
in holes made through their nostrils, they were known as the 
“‘ Nez Percés,” or “‘ Pierced Noses.” 

The expedition of-Lewis and Clark returned to the East. 
The Indian tribes of the West were left once more to them- 
selves. But the Nez Percés in some way had learned some- 
thing of the Great Spirit—the true God—whom the white 
men worshiped. They were no longer satisfied with the devil 
worship of the sorcerers to which they were accustomed. 
They thought slowly, however, and considered the matter 
around the council fire. It was not until more than twenty- 
five years after the expedition of Lewis and Clark that they 
made up their minds to seek for the white man’s “ Book of 
heaven.” Four of their leading men started to the East, to 
see what they could find out about the God whom the white 
people worshiped. They set out on a long journey of two 
thousand miles to St. Louis, which was then a frontier post 
in command of General Clark—the same Clark who- had 
been entertained by them when he was Captain Clark, 
twenty-five years before. 

It was October when the little party of four Indians 
reached St. Louis. General Clark received them gladly, but 
he was troubled, too, for there was no Bible in their lan- 
guage that he could give them. He told them all that he 
could tell them about the God whom the white people wor- 
shiped. He tried to help them in every way. 

But in spite of the kind treatment which they received, 
the two older Indians died during that winter in St. Louis. 
In the spring the two younger men, whose names were 
Hi-yonts-tohan (Rabbit Skin Leggings) and T'a-wis-sis-sim- 
nim (No Horns on His Head) went back to their own people. 
But they were sad. They had not accomplished their errand. 
This is what No Horns on His Head said to his white 
friends, as he bade them good-by: 

“T come to you over a trail of many moons from the set- 
ting sun. I came with one eye partly open for more light 
for my people who dwell in darkness. I made my way to 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 341 


you with strong arms, through many enemies and strange 
lands, that | might carry back much to them. I go back with 
both arms broken and empty. The two fathers who came 
with us, the braves of many winters and wars—we leave 
them here asleep by your great waters and wigwams. My 
people sent me to get the Book from heaven from the white 
men. You make my feet heavy with burdens of gifts, but 
the Book is not among them. When I tell my poor, blind 
people, in the big council, after one more snow, that I did not 
get the Book, no word will be spoken. One by one they will 
arise and go out into silence. My people will die in dark- 
ness. No Book from the white man to make the road plain. 
I have no more words.” 

Rabbit Skin Leggings and No Horns on His Head felt 
that they had failed in their mission. But they had not. 
Their appeal was published and before long the Christians 
of America were planning to send out missionaries to these 
brave Indians who wanted to know so much about the white 
man’s God and his “ Book of heaven.” 


HANDWORK 


Make upon the sand table the scene of the Indian camp 
fire and the braves about it. Make wigwams and tepees to 
set around it. Make an Indian scene that is as material as 
possible. 


NoteBook WorK 


Enter this lesson in your notebook. See if you cannot 
find some Indian scenes to use as decoration. If you cannot 
find any pictures, draw an Indian brave, and color the picture. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 
The little dramatization given on page 342. 


Mrmory Work 


The last verse of our Missionary Hymn: 


342 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“Waft, waft, ye winds, his story, 
And you, ye waters, roll, 
Till like a sea of glory 
It spreads from pole to pole; 
Till o’er our ransomed nature 
The Lamb for sinners slain, 
Redeemer, King, Creator, 
In bliss returns to reign.” 


= 


An ExeErcisé To Go witH THis LEsson 
SEEKING THE BOOK OF HEAVEN 


(A group of Indians gathered around a camp fire. All 
earnestly talking together.) 


Rappit Skin Leccincs: We know that there is a Great 
Spirit. We know that the white men worship One of 
whom we know not. When their braves came to our 
country many moons ago, bearing the iron rod which 
could send forth thunder and lightning, they raised their 
hands upward to heaven; they pointed upward. 

Wurrr Braver: Could it be the great lord sun whom they 
worship? Is he the Great Spirit, who rules the coming 
of the spring, and brings back to us the pleasant days 
of summer after winter’s cold? 

RABBIT SKIN LecciIncs: It may be so. And yet—I know 
not. We have heard that they have a Book of heaven, 
which tells them of the Great Spirit and how he wants 
them to worship him. What do you think, my brothers, 
of the plan of sending braves to the great chiefs of the 
white men, to ask them of their Great Spirit, and to seek 
their Book of heaven? 

AuL: Let us send! Let some one go! 

WHITE BEAVER: And who shall go as representative of our 
tribe? It is a long journey through the forests—a jour- 
ney of many moons, my brothers, over streams and 
through woods where our tribes have not traveled for 
many years. 

No Horns on His Heap: I am young I know, but I will 
go if it seems good to the great chiefs of the Pierced 
Noses. 

Witttré Braver: Our brother has spoken well. He is young, 
but he is wise. He shall go. 





Je IORECHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 343 


Ragpsit SKIN Leccrncs: And I woutd go, if it seems good 
to the great chiefs! 

Brack Eacite: And I would go, too. 

MAN oF THE Morninc: And I, too, would seek the white 
man’s Book of heaven. (The older chiefs talk solemnly 
together. The oldest chief rises.) 

It seems good to us as we talk over the council fire to send 
to our white brothers those who will seek the white man’s 
Book of heaven. Rabbit Skin Leggings, thou. No Horns 
on His Head, thou. Man of the Morning, thou. Black 
Eagle, thou. Be wise. Be prudent. Do your best to learn 
about the white man’s God. Bring back to us his Book of 
heaven. 


Scene 2, The Fort of St. Louis 


(Sentry reports to General Clark who is in charge of the 
fort.) 

SENTRY: Sir, four Indian braves who have come from the 
far West wish to see you. 

GENERAL CLARK: Let them come in. 

(The four braves enter. One of them seems ill. The 
others help him.) 

GENERAL CLARK: Welcome, braves of the Nez Percés. 
What can we do for you? 

BLACK EAGLE: Sir, we come on a friendly errand. We 
have traveled for many moons to ask about your Book 
of heaven. But first—our brother here is ill. We 
would rest before we talk with you. 

GENERAL CLARK: Rest and eat, braves, since you come on a 
friendly errand. ‘To-morrow we will talk about your 
quest. 

RABBIT SKIN Leccines: It is well. The white chief is wise. 
Come, my brothers, let us rest. 


Scene 3. Later. 


(General Clark and other white men. ‘Two braves come 
in, Rabbit Skin Leggings and No Horns on His Head.) 
Ragpit SKIN Leccincs: We have come, O white father, 

to say farewell. There is a great sadness in our hearts. 
(To No Horns on His Head.) Speak, O my brother, to 
the white men. 


344, JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


No Horns on His Heap: I came to you over the trail of 
many moons from the setting sun. . . . I made way to 
you with strong arms through many enemies and strange 
lands, that I might carry back light to my blind people. 
I go back with arms broken and empty. Two fathers 
came with us. They were braves of many winters and 
wars. We leave them asleep here by your great waters 
and wigwam. “hey were tired in many moons and 
their moccasins wore out. . . . lam going back the long, 
sad trail to my people of the dark land. You make my 
feet heavy with gifts and my moccasins will grow old 
in carrying them, yet the Book was not among them. 
When I tell my poor, blind people in the big council, 
after one more snow, that I did not bring the Book, no 
word will be spoken by our old men or by our young 
braves. One by one they will rise up and go out in 
silence. My people will die in darkness, and they will 
go on the long path to other hunting grounds. No white 
man will go with them, and there will be no white man’s 
Book to make the way plain. I have no more words. 

(The Indians withdraw silently. The white men look at 
one another sadly. Then they say:) 

Let us tell this story to those who can help these red men. 
We are soldiers and we do not know how to do it, but there 
are those who do know. Let us tell this story everywhere, 
of how the braves of the Pierced Noses sought in a journey 
of thousands of miles for the white man’s Book of heaven! 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE BOOK WON 
Acts 16:8-10 
Tut Memory VERSE 
“Come over into Macedonia, and help us.”—Acts 16:9. 


THE Lesson Story 


How would you like to take a wedding trip across the 
United States in a wagon—a wedding trip that lasted for 


ee 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 345 


seven months—where you did not go over smooth, asphalt 
roads at the rate of thirty or forty miles an hour, but through 
forests where there was just a trail, over mountains which 
no white woman had ever crossed before? That is what 
happened to two brides and grooms who started out on their 
wedding trips from their homes in New York State in 1836, 
as missionaries to the Indians. 

The Nez Percés Indians, No Horns on His Head and 
Rabbit Skin Leggings, had returned to their homes in the 
valley of the Columbia River, in what is now the State of 
Idaho. They had not found the white man’s Book of heaven 
for themselves, but the story of their search was told far and 
wide in the eastern part of the United States, and soon 
preparations were being made to send missionaries among 
them. | 

In 1833 Rev. Jason Lee was sent out to establish a mis- 
sion among the Indians west of the Rocky Mountains, and 
in 1835 the American Board of Missions sent out two men— 
Rev. Samuel Parker, and Dr. Marcus Whitman, a young 
physician who had become interested in the story of the 
Nez Percés. 

It is hard for us to realize nowadays what the western 
part of the United States was like in those times, less than 
a hundred years ago. St. Louis was a frontier post, and the 
great West was almost unknown, except to the Indians and 
the fur traders of the Hudson’s Bay Company. The United 
States claimed the territory, but there was a dispute with 
England in regard to the northwestern portion—the whole 
vast region that in those days was known as Oregon, but 
which now comprises the three great States of Washington, 
Idaho, and Oregon, besides fifty thousand square miles of 
western Montana and Wyoming—a region thirty-six times 
the size of the State of Massachusetts. 

In the spring of 1835 Mr. Parker and Dr. Whitman came 
to Green River, Wyoming. Here was the meeting place of 
the fur traders and the Indians, and here the reception of 
the missionaries was so favorable that it seemed wise for 
Dr. Whitman to return east, to report and get a larger com- 
pany of missionaries while Mr. Parker went on. The Nez 
Percés, as a proof of good faith, sent back to the Kast with 
Dr. Whitman two of their boys. 


346 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


While Dr. Whitman was at home he was married to Miss 
Narcissa Prentiss. He found, too, another bride and groom 
who were ready to go to the West as missicnaries—H. H. 
Spalding and his wife—and it was Mrs. Whitman and Mrs. 
Spalding who were the first white women to cross the Rocky 
Mountains. 

The story of that journey is most interesting. They went 
across Pennsylvania .by stage to Pittsburgh. From there 
they went by the Ohio River to St. Louis, and thence to 
Council Bluffs. Here they expected to join the caravan of 
the American Fur Company, but they were too late, and so 
had to chase the caravan for almost a month before they 
caught up to it. At last they came to Fort Laramie in Wy- 
oming. Here it was the custom to leave the wagons, as the 
trail was considered too hard, and to go the rest of the way 
on horseback. Dr. Whitman, however, persuaded the men 
of the caravan to try to get a light wagon farther. And this 
wagon was the first wheeled wagon to cross the Rocky 
Mountains. That is why we have the statue of Dr. Whit- 
man with a wheel in his hand. 

On the Fourth of July, 1836, the party reached the South 
Pass of the Rockies. They came to the point in the Great 
Divide from which the waters flow both east to the Atlantic 
and west to the Pacific. And before they entered upon this 
land which they hoped to win for Christ—as much a heathen 
land as if it had been India or Burma—they dismounted 
from their horses, spread a blanket on the grass and raised 
the Stars and Stripes. Then they placed a Bible on the 
blanket and kneeling around it, took possession of the region 
“in the name of God and the United States.” 

On the twentieth of July the party came to Green River, 
where Dr. Whitman had left Mr. Parker the year before. 
Here they were met by a delegation of two tnousand Indians 
and two hundred fur traders. The Indians were very 
friendly to the men who had come to them with the Book 
of heaven, and particularly pleased about the white squaws 
who had journeyed across the mountains to help them. 

After a little rest the party continued their journey, and 
on September 2 came to Fort Walla Walla in Washington. 

And so the work of giving to the Indians the white man’s 
Book of heaven began. There is, however, a sad part to this 





Reproduced from STaTtuE ON WITHERSPOON BUILDING. PHILADELPHIA. 


MARCUS WHITMAN 





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HUINIORSCTLUR GH SCHOOL LESSONS 347 


story, for after eleven years of work among the Indians, 
Dr. and Mrs. Whitman were massacred by those for whom 
they had done so much. At the time there were seventy- 
two persons in the mission station, and of these fourteen 
were killed. 


But in memory of Marcus Whitman and his wife a school 
has been opened in the place where they worked and it has 
grown and prospered until now it is one of the leading edu- 
cational institutions in the Northwest. 


PuTtTiINc THE LEsson INTo THE LIFE oF THE CLASS 


Work among the Indians of our own country is home 
mission work. ‘There is a great deal of this work to be 
done even yet in our great, civilized land. Perhaps you live 
in a part of the country where there are still Indians to be 
met with occasionally. Perhaps you live in a part of the 
United States where no Indians are seen. But, wherever 
you live, you can plan to learn about the work that the mis- 
sionaries are doing among them, and help it in every way 
that you can. 

Marcus Whitman and his wife went into a land that was 
as heathen as if it had been China or India or Burma. 
Nowadays our land is not like that; automobiles go over 
well-kept roads such as the Lincoln Highway, from the 
Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, in a few weeks, and fast trains 
go ina few days. But still there are people in our land who 
know as little about the Bible as the Indians of those days 
knew. Sabbath-school missionaries are being sent out to all 
these neglected parts of our land by our Church Board. 
Find out what you can about the Sabbath-school missionary, 
and see if you can help in their work. 

Try to be brave in doing Christ’s will as the Whitmans 
were brave in trying to do what they knew was right. 


Tur Lesson ‘TRutTH IN Your LIFE 


I will try to be as brave as I can in doing right. I will 
keep before me the example of the missionaries who are so 
courageous in carrying out God’s will. 


348 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Map Work 


Put on the blackboard a map of the United States and 
trace the route of the journey made by the Whitmans and 
the Spaldings. 


How Marcus WHITMAN SAVED OREGON FOR THE 
UNITED STATES 

Crossing the mouhtains with the Bible in one hand and the 
flag in the other, Marcus Whitman deserves the name of 
Christian patriot as well as Christian missionary. Ever 
mindful of his country’s interests in the great Northwest, 
his services to her have rarely been surpassed. ‘To him be- 
longs the honor of opening a wagon road across the Rockies 
and adding three stars to the American flag. 

The ownership of Oregon had long been a matter of dis- 
pute. The rights of the United States were based on the 
discovery of the Columbia by Gray in 1792, the first ex- 
ploration of the river from source to mouth by Lewis and 
Clark in 1805, and the planting of the first settlement at 
Astoria by John Jacob Astor in 1811. Strong as was this 
threefold claim, England contested it, and England in Ore- 
gon practically meant the Hudson’s Bay Company, that great 
money-making corporation, whose policy it was to restrain 
civilization and keep the territory a wilderness for the pro- 
duction of furs. 

In 1818 the matter was temporarily settled by a treaty 
providing for joint occupancy for a limited time, but it was 
tacitly understood that the final result would be determined 
by emigration. Strange to say, the government at Washing- 
ton was not fully awake to the importance of the situation. 
Regarding it as a wild and unproductive region, and the 
Rocky Mountains as an impassable barrier, they questioned 
whether Oregon was worth saving. 


In September, 1842, Dr. Whitman learned from A. L,. 
Lovejoy, who came with a party of emigrants from the 
East, that a new treaty settling boundary disputes between 
England and the United States, would probably be signed 
before Congress adjourned in March, 1843. Thoroughly 
aroused, he conceived the idea of going to Washington at 


JOUNTORM CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 349 


once to push the claims of Oregon, and bring back emigrants 
enough to give the United States a majority of voters. 


He pushed on without delay, arriving in Washington early 
in March. 

Just what transpired there is not definitely known, but 
certain it is that in interviews with President Tyler and 
other statesmen he impressed upon them the value of Oregon 
and its importance to the United States, and declared that 
the Rocky Mountains were not an impassable barrier, since 
he himself had crossed them four times, had taken a wagon 
through in 1836, and intended to return with a large party 
of emigrants in the early spring. 


In May, 1843, a caravan was organized, consisting ot 
nearly nine hundred persons, about two hundred wagons, 
and some fifteen hundred head of cattle. By the first 
week in June they were well under way. With Whitman 
guiding them, they were able to proceed the entire dis- 
tance with their wagons, an achievement hitherto deemed im- 
possible. At the end of five months the weary travelers and 
battered wagons descended into the beautiful valley of the 
Walla Walla, and the long, hard journey was over. A wagon 
road had been opened through the Rockies, and Oregon was 
won! ‘Three years later, on June 15, 1846, a treaty was 
signed at Washington, whereby England relinquished her 
claim to Oregon, and the dispute of half a century was 
brought to a peaceful close. 

—‘The True Story of Marcus Whitman,” by Belle M. Brain. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 


HOW WE MAY HELP IN GIVING THE BOOK 
TO THE WORLD 


Psalm 119:105, 130; John. 8:12. 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


The Bible gives to us God’s words, “ Those that seek me 
diligently shall find me.” Those words are as true to-day as 


350 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


they were when they were first written in the book of 
Proverbs. The Nez Percés Indians were a fine race of 
people, earnest, eager to learn, and religious. We who know 
about God’s love and his Word are glad that they were given 
an opportunity to hear the words of the Book which they 
sought so earnestly. We want to help on this work. We 
want to do what we can to give the Word of God to those in 
our land who do not know the gospel. Let us pray for those 

in our own land whom we want to help. 


THe CLass PRAYER 


O God, who art the Father of all the people in the world, 
help our missionaries who are trying to give the good news 
of thy love to all thy children everywhere. But to-day we 
pray especially for those in our own land who do not know 
about thee. Lighten the darkness for them, we ask. In 
Jesus’ name. Amen. | 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


John 8:12; Psalm 119:105, 130; Jeremiah 42:3 eC hrons 
icles 16:8-12; John 12:36; Hebrews 1:1, 2; Romans 15:4. 


Hymwns THAT May BE USED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“How Precious Is the Book Divine.” 
peleainip OMMOUut ect 

“Father of Mercies, in Thy Word.” 
“Lord. Thy Word Abideth.” 


QUESTIONS FoR UsE IN THE MEETING 


1. Tell what you know about the Nez Percés Indians. 

2. ‘Tell what you know about their search for the white 
man’s Book of heaven. 

3. Who was Marcus Whitman? 

4. Who were the first white women to cross the Rocky 
Mountains ? 

5. How can Juniors follow the example of the first mis- 
sionaries to the West? 





JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS Sal 


6. How can Juniors help.in mission work among the 
Indians? 


7. In what way were these missionaries like Paul? 


‘Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


1. How Marcus Whitman Saved Oregon for the United 
States. | 


2. ‘The Journey of the Whitmans and the Spaldings. 

3. The Nez Percés Indians. 

4. The Indians of the West To-Day. 

5. Home Mission Work Among the Indians. 

6. Sabbath School Missions. 

7. What Juniors Can Do to Help Along Home Mission 
Work. | 


PARAGRAPHS FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


We who have the gospel must give it to those who are 
living without it, and longing for it. 

We must pray for the Indians, especially for those who 
are Christians. 

Part of the money which is given in our churches and our 
Sunday schools is spent in building Sunday schools among 
the Indians. Another part is used in building Sunday 
schools in the West and South, where the people do not live 
close together, as in our cities, but too far apart to keep up 
churches and Sunday schools for themselves. We can help 
this work with our offerings. 

We can help on the work of home missions by our prayers, 
our offerings, and our interest. Let us take every oppor- 
tunity to help in these ways. 


CHAD TE Rex 2aV IT 
WEEK DAY SESSION 


OVERCOMING DIFFICULTIES FOR THE GOSPEL’S 
SAKE, 


Isaiah 45:18; Psalms 19:1, 2; 119-105, 165= IwuikesOe ae 
Romans 15:4; Hebrews 1:1. 


Tur Memory VERSE 


“The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; but the word of 
our God shall stand forever.”—Isaiah 40:8. 


Tue Lesson Story 


Look in your geographies, or in an atlas, and find a large 
map of North America. See if you can find where the 
Rocky Mountains, about which we studied last week, extend 
into Canada. Then find the Saskatchewan River, the Arctic 
Circle, Hudson Bay. That great Canadian territory is as 
large as Europe, if you omit Russia and Spain. The climate 
of most of the country is very cold, and the only white men 
who had ventured to explore it up until the year 1840, were 
fur traders and men interested in the Hudson’s Bay Com- 
pany. This was just about the time that the Whitmans and 
the Spaldings were going to the Indians of Oregon and 
Washington with the story of the gospel of Jesus. The 
Indians all through North America were learning that the 
white man knew a God who was better than their god. 

For some years the officials of the Hudson’s Bay Company 
had noticed that the Indians of the North were going south. 
At first they thought that this was because the red men were 
seeking a warmer climate. They tried to find out the reason, 
and finally discovered that the Indians were trying to learn 
more of the religion of the white man—of the Great Spirit 
who loved his children of every color. Family after family 


352 





pONIOR  GOURCIESCHOOLIFLESSONS SES) 


had embarked in their birch canoes and started south. One 
party, it is said, journeyed almost as far as the chiefs of the 
Nez Percés had journeyed—they had traveled nine hundred 
miles in their canoes, until they found a missionary, whom 
they begged to return with them to their own country. 

The men in charge of the Hudson’s Bay Company were 
shrewd men. They knew that it was better for their business 
if the Indians remained in the North where the hunting and 
the trapping were good. They must make some plan to keep 
the Indians in the North. So they planned to bring a mis- 
sionary to the red men. 

In the meanwhile God was preparing a man for the work. 
This man was James Evans, who became the first great mis- 
sionary to the red men of the North. 

James Evans was born at Kingston-upon-Hull in England, 
in 1801. As a young man he was apprenticed to a grocer in 
Hull, a city not far from his home. His master was a good, 
Christian man and while Evans was in his house, he himselt 
became a Christian. 

In the meantime his father had emigrated to Canada. 
When James's apprenticeship was over, he followed his 
father to the new world. He did not find employment there, 
however, as a grocer, but became a teacher in a backwoods 
log schoolhouse. ‘Two years after this, when he was twenty- 
seven.years old, he was given charge of an Indian school at 
Ihacemlakcnear lake Ontario. (Ele shad’ married bys this 
time, and he and his wife lived at first in a tent, and later 
in a log house. He had to teach forty little Indians, whose 
parents lived in wigwams on the government reservation. 
And within a year, twenty-two of these Indian children could 
read the New Testament in English! Don’t you think that 
he must have been a good teacher, and that they must have 
been industrious pupils ? 

But James Evans was not satisfied with teaching in just 
one place, or even in two places. He was soon ordained to 
the ministry for work among the Indians and began to teach 
in seventeen different places, some of them fifty miles from 
his home. And because he was so successful in this work, 
James Evans was the man whom the officials of the Hudson’s 
Bay Company selected as their missionary to the Indians. In 
the year 1840 he took up this new work, and began to teach 


354 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


the Cree Indians, who so much desired to hear the Word 
of God. 


HANDWORK 


Make for the sand table an Indian village, with wigwams, 
tepees, and a council fire. See if you can dress a small doll 
to represent an Indian brave, and another as a squaw with 
a papoose on her back. Use the pattern for the wigwam 
which is given here. 


NotEBooK Work 
Enter in your notebook all the facts that you know about 
the Cree Indians or other Indians of the North. See if you 
can find additional facts in your geographies. 


Map Work | 
Mark on your blackboard map of North America the parts 
of the country in which the Cree Indians lived, and in which 
James Evans taught. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 
Continue the preparation of the missionary box which 
you are preparing to send away. Plan it carefully with your 
teacher. ‘Talk about the missionary to whom you want to 
send it, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 355 


MrEmMory Work 


“From ocean unto ocean 

Our land shall own thee, Lord, 

And, filled with true devotion, 
Obey thy sovereign word, 

Our prairies and our mountains, 
Forest and fertile field, 

Our rivers, lakes, and fountains, 
To thee shall tribute yield.” 





SUNDAY SESSION 
THE CREE ALPHABET 
Psat blo 32-30% 


THe Memory VERSE 


“Write ... and make it plain upon tablets, that he may 
run that readeth it.”’—Habakkuk 2:2. 





Tuer Lesson Story 


James Evans and his wife and daughter started to their 
new field in the year 1840. The journey was mainly by 
Indian canoe. Their journey was exciting; for there were 
many unexpected dangers to pass through—nights spent 
around camp fires, far from the houses of civilized men, days 
spent in traveling along quick-flowing streams, where often- 
times it was necessary to run through rapids, which caused 
many an anxious moment. Egerton R. Young describes the 
canoeing in this way: 

“The men make every possible effort to urge the boat 
forward faster than the water, so that it may steer the bet- 
ter. ‘The bowsman and steersman stand erect, guiding the 
frail bark through the smoother places in the current, which 
rises and foams around you as if eager to devour you. Now 
we rush with rapid speed toward a rock against which the 
waters dash with fearful fury, and to a person unaccustomed 
to such scenes, you appear to be on the point of destruction, 
but one vigorous stroke of the paddle from the bowsman 
and the steersman sends the light craft at a sharp angle from 
the impelling danger, and away you plunge again over the 


356 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


surging waters, sometimes floating for a minute in a small 
eddy and hovering as though to choose your path, and then 
again plunging through the windings of the stream, till hav- 
ing passed the whole in safety, you float in the smooth 
waters below.” 

At last the party came to Norway House, a center of the 
trade of the Hudson’s Bay Company between Lake Winnipeg 
and Hudson Bay. Here the family settled, living for a time 
almost as the Indians lived. 

As soon as the Indians heard of the arrival of the mis- 
sionary, many of them gathered at Norway House. ‘They 
built a new village, under Mr. Evans’ instruction, with houses 
of timber instead of wigwams. They planted potatoes and 
made a settlement. 

But it was necessary for the Indians to be away from the 
village for long periods of time. ‘They had to go out for 
beaver, or for bear, or for wolves and foxes, whose pelts 
they sold to the fur traders. Mr. Evans felt that they must 
have some way of carrying the Word of God with them on 
their journeys. ‘They had no written language, no books. 

As James Evans studied the language of the Crees, he 
found that it was very simple. ‘There were only thirty-six 
sounds. He invented a system something like shorthand, 
with a sign for each of the thirty-six sounds. Look at the 
chart on page 358 and you will see the signs that he used. 

But this was only the first step. Now it was necessary to 
find some way of printing the alphabet that he had invented. 
He had no printing press, no type, no paper. At first he 
made a pen from wood. He mixed a sort of ink from chim- 
ney soot and sturgeon oil. He used birch bark as paper and 
a great rock asa desk. Quickly the Indians learned the signs, 
and soon they could read the verses of the Bible and the 
hymns which Mr. Evans wrote for them. Soon he began to 
prepare type, cutting the letter, or sign, from oak. Then he 
filed out of one side of an inch-square iron bar the square 
body of the type; and after placing the bar with the notch 
over the letter, applied another polished bar to the face of 
the mold and poured in the lead. For lead he used the thin 
sheets from the tea chests which came to the fur traders; he 
made a simple printing press from a jackscrew which the 
traders lent him. With this equipment Mr. Evans was able 


FUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS Sos 


to print three hundred copies of the hymn, “ Jesus, My All, 
to Heaven Is Gone” in one day. The Indian women gladly 
gathered the birch bark and soon the “ talking birch bark ” 
was being taken by the Indians when they went on their long 
journeys, and distributed far and wide. 

Of course news of what James Evans had done spread, 
and an English missionary society soon had made a large 
quantity of type and sent to the brave missionary a press, 
ink, rollers, and other necessaries. 

Even to-day the syllabic characters are in use. “The 
British and Foreign Bible Society now furnishes all these 
northern missions with Bibles and Testaments free of cost. 
Hundreds of Indians are reading out of them every day 
of the year. Missionaries to other tribes have utilized these 
syllabics for other languages, by adding additional signs for 
sounds not found among the Crees. Methodists, Episco- 
palians, Moravians, Roman Catholics, and others use these 
syllabics of James Evans, and find them of incalculable 
value.” But James Evans was the first to invent them and 
to him is due the credit of giving to the Cree Indians the 
alphabet and the Bible in their own language. 


Purtinc THE Lesson INto THE LIFE oF THE CLASS 


When James Evans went to the Indians of the North, the 
men of a certain tribe were a “ drunken, idle, ignorant, de- 
graded body of pagans.” After he lived with them they be- 
came civilized Christians. They became total abstainers, and 
by their sobriety, honesty, and industry won the respect and 
admiration of the white men who lived near by. Has your 
knowledge of God’s Word made any difference in your life? 
Are you more honorable, more industrious than you were 
last week, or last month, or last year? 

Do you think that you will ever be able to endure hard- 
ships for Jesus’ sake as did the brave missionaries about 
whom we have studied? Perhaps God will want you to bea 
missionary. Perhaps he will want you to serve him in some 
other way. You may be sure that he wants you to serve 
him in some way, and you should try to learn his will as 
earnestly as the Indians did. 


305 JUNIOR: CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


You have the Bible in your own language. Do you read , 
it as earnestly and as eagerly as the Indians did? : 


Tur Lesson ‘RUTH IN Your LIFE 


I thank God that I have the Bible in my own language; — 
that I have a copy of it to read every day. Resolved; That — 
I will read my Bible every day and will listen to the message — 
which God sends me through it. 





HANDWORK 


On this page you will find a chart of the alphabet that 
James Evans invented for the Cree Indians. See if you can 
make any words. The word on page 359, for instance, is 





PUNIOReGIURC He SGHOOL LESSONS 359 


Pee) 
Ma-ne-to, “the Great Spirit.” To find how it is made, find 
the sound m in the column headed “ Initials.”” Then find the 
sound “ ah,’ in the column “ Syllables.” Run down that 
column until you reach the sign opposite “m.” ‘That will 
give you the first sign. Then find “2” in the Initial column, 
and e in the syllable column; “¢” in the Initial column and o 
in the syllable column. Do you see now where you get “ Ma- 
ne-to”’? If the word that you make does not end in a 
vowel, you must use some of the signs in the last column, 
marked “ Finals.” See if you can make your own name. 
There were not so many ‘sounds in Cree, as in English, so 
perhaps you cannot do this. They had no letter B for 
instance, so you couldn’t write “ Bob,” or “ Bertha.” But 


you can make Kate, or Sue, or Thomas, or Nora, or Paul, 
_ and many others. 


Mrmory Work 


The Indians of the North knew very little about singing, 
but Mr. and Mrs. Evans taught them some hymns. ‘The 
first hymn in Cree was this. See if you can learn it. You 
Cansine it to the tune He Leadeth Me.” 


“Jesus, my All, to heaven is gone, 
He whom I fix my hopes upon; 
His track I see, and I’ll pursue 
The narrow way till him I view.” 


THE INDIANS AND THE BIBLE 


Traveling bands of Indians have gone out on hunting ex- 
peditions hundreds of miles from their home, and, seated 
beside the camp fire, have sung to their pagan brethren the 
songs of Zion, which have stirred deeply the hearts of their 
dusky friends. Then taking out their Cree books they have 
taught them how to read, so that, without ever having seen 
a white teacher, they have learned the story of the love of 
Christ. Far in the North a band of hunters met a pagan 


360 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


band of Indians who had never heard of Christ. They told 
them the wonderful story, and by means of the syllabic char- 
acters the pagans were in a short time enabled to read. The 
Christian Indians remained long enough with them to make 
them acquainted with the syllables, and then when they were 
parting the pagans begged for copies of the Word of God. 
Unable to comply with the request, and still anxious to help 
them in the way of life, they tore their Bibles into parts and 
divided them among the people. 

A number of Indians called at the Rossville Mission 
House, during E. R. Young’s residence there, seeking re- 
ligious instruction. They had copies of the Great Book 
and were able to read it, but were not able to under- 
stand, so they had come a journey of thirteen nights that 
they might learn more about the Saviour of men. A copy 
of the Bible was shown them, which they read with per- 
fect ease. They had never seen a missionary, and lived 
hundreds of miles from a mission house, stil they were able 
to read the Bible. The Hudson’s Bay Company’s agent had 
some copies of the Bible in the Evans syllabic characters, 
which these Indians had seen, and obtained possession of. 
They visited a band of Christian Indians at a long distance 
from their own home, and from them they received help, so 
that they were soon able to read. So well pleased were they 
that they remained with the band for some time, and then 
they returned to tell the story they had heard to others. 
Thus, without any teacher or missionary, many of the Indians 
in the forest, and along the rivers and lakes of that northern 
land, have learned to read the Word of God for themselves. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
MAKING THE BIBLE OUR OWN 
Psalm 119:129-132; Proverbs 2:1-6 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We have studied several lessons about the ways in which 
the Bible in their own language was given to the different 
people of the world. William Carey translated the Bible 


a 


ee ae ee ee eee ee ee 


_— =e Te 


ee ee ee eee ee 


el eee ee ee By 


ao 


HONOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 361 


into the dialects of India. Robert Morrison translated it 
into Chinese. Adoniram Judson translated it into Burmese. 
And in this week’s lesson we have learned how James Iyvans 
gave it to the Indians of our own Northland. We have a 
Bible in our own language. We do not have to wait until 
some one comes to us and gives us a translation. But do 
we make as good use of our Bible as these foreign people 
made of the Bibles which were given to them? Do we read 
it and try to make it our own? Do we learn its verses by 
heart and try to carry out the lessons that they teach us? 
Let us think about these things to-day so that we may resolve 
to make the Bible our own possession which no one can ever 
take away from us. 


Tue Crass PRAYER 


Our Father who art in heaven: We want to thank thee 
for having spoken to us in the Bible. Help us to make it 
our very own. Help us to realize that in the Bible thou art 
speaking to us and that in it thou art telling us thy will for 
us. Help us to remember to read it every day. We thank 
thee that thy Word may be a hght to lighten our feet, that 
we have it before us to show us the way. We ask thy bless- 
ing upon our reading of thy Word. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


er meee 2 oe meds 130; lsaiah. 02 3/ >a Acts 
17 :22-30; Proverbs 3:1-4; Hebrews 10:16. 


Hymuns tTHat May Br UsED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


Use the same hymns as were used in Chapters XXXV 
and XXXVI. 


QUESTIONS FoR Usk IN THE MEETING 


1. How many men can you name who translated the 
Bible into a foreign language? 

2. Do you think it would be harder to translate the Bible 
into Chinese or into Cree? 

3. Compare the places where the Whitmans worked with 
the place where James Evans worked. 


362 JUNIOR, CHURGED SCHOOLVEESSONS 


4, What differences were there among the Indians whom 
Whitman taught and whom James Evans taught? 

How can you always have the Bible, or part of it, 
with you? 

6. How can you best show your thankfulness to God 
that you have the Bible in your own language, and have 
always had it? 

7. How can you help in missionary work? 

8. Why was James Evans called “the Apostle of the 
North”? What is an apostle? 


Topics FoR DISCUSSION OR REPORT'S 


1. James Evans, the Apostle of the North. 

2. Mission Work Among the Indians To-Day. 

3. How Our Class Can Help in Missionary Work to the 
Indians. 

4. A Comparison of the Work of Any Two Translators 
of the Bible About Whom We Have Studied. 

5. Whitman and Evans, 

6. How Juniors Can Best Make the Bible Their Own. 

7. Hiding God’s Word in Our Hearts. 

8. Helping to Give Others the Word of God in Their 
Own Language. 


To READ IN CONNECTION WITH THE MEETING © 


Juniors usually have good memories. If we learn the 
words of the Bible now, we shall probably never forget them. 
They will be ours forever. 

Robert Morrison learned Psalm 119 when he was only 
thirteen years old. There are one hundred and seventy-six 
verses in this psalm. Do you know that many verses of the 
Bible altogether ? 

Hide God’s Word in your heart. It will always be a com- 
fort to you. 


“Who would not love the Bible, 

So beautiful and wise? 

Its teachings charm the simple, 
And point us to the skies. 

Its stories all so mighty 
Of men so brave to see; 

The beautiful, dear Bible 
It shall our teacher be. 


= oe 


JUNIORS CHURGH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“But most we love the Bible, 
For there we children learn 
How Christ for us became a child, 
‘Our hearts to him to turn; 
And how he bowed to sorrow, 
That we his face might see, 
The Bible, O the Bible, 
It shall our teacher be.” 


363 


CGAY P: thks Ra xX XN CLE 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
DAVID LIVINGSTONE, THE PATHFINDER 


Psalms 119:136; 121 ; 135:1-5; Isaiah 9:2; Matthew 4:23; 
SrlOeZox2Ub: 


Tur Memory VERSE 


“Even so let your light shine before men; that they may 
see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in 
heaven.”—Matthew 5:16. 


Tuer Lesson Story 


Do you remember how Robert Morrison learned Psalm 119 
so well that he could recite it when he was thirteen years old? 
There was another boy who also became a missionary, who 
did even better than Robert Morrison, for David Living- 
stone recited Psalm 119 with only two errors when he was 
only nine years old—as old as the youngest of you Juniors. 
Like Robert Morrison he made the Bible his own possession. 
He had God’s Word hidden in his heart and mind. 

David Livingstone was born in Blantyre, in Scotland, in 
1813. His parents were earnest Christians as were the 
parents of so many other missionaries and Christian leaders 
about whom we have learned. ‘They were poor, too, and 
David had to go to work in a cotton factory when he was 
only ten years old. And what do you think he did -vith his 
first week’s wages? He gave half of it to his mother. Part 
of the rest he spent for a Latin grammar. ‘That shows the 
kind of boy he was—studious, earnest, affectionate, and 
honorable. 

When he was about twenty years old, he became a fol- 
lower of Christ, and determined to become a missionary. 
He studied medicine and received a medical diploma. At 
first he wanted to take up missionary work in China, but he 


364 


JentORsCHURCH, SCHOOL LESSONS 365 


heard Robert Moffat talk of the needs of Africa, and so de- 
cided to go to that country. He was ordained for this work 
in November, 1840, and sailed for Africa in December. In 
July, 1841, he arrived at Kuruman, Moffat’s station in South 
Africa. There he stayed for two years, learning the language 
and missionary methods, and in 1843 he established his own 
first independent mission station at Mabotsa, about two hun- 
dred miles from Kuruman. Robert Moffat’s daughter, Mary, 
became his wife. 

The family did not remain very long at this station, how- 
ever. Soon they settled among a tribe of Africans, called 
“the Bakwains.” ‘The chief of this tribe, Sechele, became a 
good friend of the Livingstones, but the country was un- 
healthful, and finally Livingstone sent his family to Eng- 
land, while he himself continued his work in Africa. 

Livingstone planned his work as a missionary differently 
from the way the missionaries who had been in Africa before 
him had done. His plan was to open up new centers of 
Christianity among tribes where no Christian had been be- 
fore, and to leave these places in charge of native pastors 
and teachers. So he started out to explore Africa and to 
bring its people to Christ. By his kindness, his skill as a 
physician, and his love for them, he had by this time won 
the love of many natives, and when he planned his expedi- 
tion in 1853, he had with him a party of twenty-seven 
trusted men. He had before this time discovered Lake 
Ugami (1849). Now he set out from Linyanti upon a great 
exploring tour which led him northwest across Central Af- 
rica, through pathless forests, where wild animals roamed— 
the lion, the elephant, the rhinoceros ; where there were rep- 
tiles never seen before by white men; where men of savage 
tribes might spring out upon them at any moment from be- 
hind any rock or tree. On the journey Livingstone suffered 
from thirty attacks of fever. On and on they went. The 
courage of the native helpers failed. But Livingstone’s cour- 
age held firm. ‘“ God helping me, I will go on,” he said. 

At last in May, 1854, after a journey of more than six 
months they reached Loanda, a Portuguese town on the west 
coast. It would have seemed that they had done enough. 
But David Livingstone had promised his band of helpers 
that if they went with him all the way to the sea, he would 


366 JUNIOR ‘CHURCH SCHOOE LESSONS 


come back with them to Linyanti; so after resting for the 
summer, though it seemed certain death for a man in poor 
health such as his to set out again, Livingstone started on 
the return journey in September. They went eastward and 
explored the Continent of Africa from coast to coast, reach- 
ing the mouth of the Zambesi in 1856. They reached Lin- 
yanti almost two years from the time they had left it. On 
the journey he had discovered the great Victoria Falls, which 
he named after the English queen. The people of Linyanti 
had given up the party, thinking they were lost, and great 
was the rejoicing when they returned in safety. Nota single 
man was lost. 


In all his journey of exploration, Livingstone had not for- 
gotten that his first work was that of missionary and not of 
explorer. He won many people to Christ. He kept his word 
and brought his men safe home. He had opened up many 
centers of Christianity. 


In November, 1856, he sailed to England with his charts 
and maps. He had traveled for eleven thousand miles 
through unexplored Africa and he had won for himself a 
national reputation, both as an explorer and as a missionary. 
But he was not yet satisfied. He remained for less than two 
years in England, and then returned to his work in Africa. 


HANDWORK 


Make an African village on the sand table. Perhaps you 
made such a village in connection with Chapter XXIV, and 
you may have a village which you set up at that time. If 
you have not, make huts from twigs and bits of wood. Have 
a camp fire, and place the huts in a circle around this. David 
Livingstone traveled part of the time in a sort of hammock. 
Make one of these, as you think it would be, and swing it 
between two trees. 


NoteBook Work 


* Begin the story of the life of David Livingstone in your 
notebook, so that you can finish it after your lesson for 
Sunday. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 367 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Since there is only one more lesson before we reach the 
end of our series about great missionaries, it is time to think 
of completing the box for missions. Look over the supplies 
on hand, and make plans about what else is needed. 


Mar Work 
Draw on the blackboard a map of Africa and mark the 
places mentioned in connection with this lesson. 
Memory Work 


Learn one of the sayings of Livingstone given on page 


o7 





SUNDAY SESSION 
ASLIGHTTINASDARK PLACE 
I John 1:5-10 
THe Memory VERSE 


“The darkness is passing away, and the true light already 
shineth.’—I John 2:8. 


THE LEsson StTorY 


In the spring of 1858, David Livingstone returned to 
Africa. He went as a2 consul of the British Government. 
He was a geographer and a naturalist, but he always felt that 
his first and most important work was that of a missionary. 
To him the first step necessary in making Africa Christian 
was to have a passage to the sea on either the eastern or 
the western coast. And so, when he reached Africa in 
1858, he again gathered together a group of faithful fol- 
lowers and set out on an exploring expedition. This time 
he traveled in a portable steamboat and explored the Zambesi 
River. About this time Mrs. Livingstone died. Later Liv- 
ingstone was lost to the world for two years, while he was 
exploring the region south of Lake Tanganyika, and it was 
at this time that Henry M. Stanley was sent out in search 
of the brave missionary and explorer. 


368 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


They met at Ujiji on the east shore of Lake Tanganyika, 


in the year 1871, but Stanley could not persuade Livingstone — 
to give up his work and return to England. He had not yet — 


accomplished the task which he had set before himself. So 
Stanley handed over the supplies which he had brought and 
left him to continue his work. 


But the labors and hardships at last were too much for — 


him. He had to be carried now, in a sort of palanquin as 
he traveled. On April 27, 1873, he wrote in his journay 
“ Knocked up quite, and remain—recover—sent to buy milch 


goats. We are on the banks of Molilame.” ‘This was the © 


last entry. 

The next day his men took him across the river in a 
canoe. They built a rough hut for him and laid him there 
in bed. ‘The next day he was too ill to go on, or even to talk, 
and the morning afterwards they found him kneeling by his 
bedside as if in prayer—dead. His faithful African fol- 
lowers buried his heart under the tree where he had spent 
his last hours ; his body they embalmed as well as they could, 
and sent to England. Here it was buried in Westminster 
Abbey. And on his grave this epitaph is inscribed: “ For 


thirty years his life was spent 1n an unwearied effort to — 


evangelize the native races, to explore the undiscovered 


secrets, and abolish the desolating slave trade of Central ; 
Africa, and where, with his last words, he wrote: ‘ All I can 7 


add in my solitude is, May heaven’s richest blessing come 
down on every one, American, English, Turk, who will help 
to heal this open sore of the world.’ ”’ 


PUTTING THE LESSON INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


It is said that an English missionary who was traveling in 
Africa found a native who was carrying about part of a ~ 
very old coat, which had evidently been made in England. — 


The missionary asked about it. The man smoothed the coat 
lovingly with his hand, and told this story: “Ten years ago 
I traveled with the man who owned this coat, for I was one 
of his helpers. He gave the coat to me and I love it because 
it was his. He was such a wonderful man that if you saw 


him only once, and talked with him, you would remember ! 


him always. He was a white man who treated black men as 





: 
: 
; 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 369 


his brothers; his eyes were keen and piercing, but his words 
were always gentle, and his manners were always kind. It 
was a delight to have him for a leader, for he knew the way 
to the hearts of all men.” ‘That man was David Livingstone. 
Do you think that you Juniors can live your lives so that 
there will ever be people who feel that way about you? Do 
you treat all the boys and girls in your school as if they were 
your brothers and sisters? Are your words always gentle? 
David Livingstone won the hearts of even the most savage 
men of Africa because he was so kind, so gentle, so consid- 
erate. In these points he is a good example for you to 
follow. 

David Livingstone had set a goal for himself. He kept 
his face steadily set toward that goal. He would not turn 
back. When you make a good resolution do you carry it 
through, or do you “ fall down ”’ at the first opposition? Do 
you stick it out or do you fail? Keep before you David 
Livingstone’s example when you are tempted to give up 
trying. 

David Livingstone promised his followers that if they 
went with him to the sea, he would go home with them. He 
kept his promise. Do you always keep your promises? 


Tue Lesson ‘TRUTH IN Your LIFE 


David Livingstone carried the gospel into the dark places 
of the world because he himself was a doer of the Word. 
Are you carrying the gospel light among your friends and 
companions by living as Jesus ‘would have you live and by 
doing unto others as you want them to do to you? Try this, 


if you have not already tried to live according to the Golden 
Rule. 


NoteBook WorK 


Complete the story of David Livingstone, which you have 
begun in your notebook. 


370 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
HOW I MAY BE A LIGHT BEARER 
Luke 2 :32 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We Juniors who live here in the light, in free America, 
cannot realize how black the darkness of heathen Africa was 
in the days before Robert Moffat and David Livingstone 
went there. Remember that in those days, even America was 
partly darkened by the blot of slavery, which has been taken 
away. But still there are many places in the world which are 
lost in the darkness of sin. We want to help to send to them 
the good news of the Light of the World—of Jesus who 
came as a light to lighten the Gentiles. We can help to 
spread the light by our prayers, by our offerings for mis- 
sions, by our own examples. It is true that we are only 
little lights, but we can show some brightness, by reflecting 
the glory of Jesus, the great Sun of righteousness. 


Tue Crass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, help us to spread the light of the 
gospel in all the world. We want to give the light of the 
knowledge of thee to all people, particularly to those who 
are still in the deepest darkness and ignorance. Help our 
missionaries who are teaching them about thee, and to know 
right ways of living. We ask for Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


John’8:12; 9:5; 12:35, 36; Matthew 13:43; 11 Peter siees 
Philippians 2:15. 


Hymns THAat May Br USED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“The Light of the World Is Jesus.” 
pLOavichtrote ites 

“O Christ, Our True and Only Light.” 
“ Light of the World.” 

“© Light, Whose Beams Illumine.” 


. ~~ e 


PON LORECTIOR CHeSCHOOM LESSONS 371 


“The Morning Light Is Breaking.” 
“There’s a Light Upon the Mountains,” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. ‘Tell briefly the story of David Livingstone. 

2. Name some ways in which Robert Morrison and 
David Livingstone were alike. 

3. In what ways were they both light bearers? 

4. Why has Africa been called “the Dark Continent ” ? 

5. Are there any Africans in our country? How can we 
help them? 

6. How can you let your light shine before others? 


Topics For DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


Light Bearers Across the Sea. 

Light Bearers at Home. 

How Juniors Can Spread the Light. 

The Light of the World. 

What Jesus Said About Giving Light. 

Giving Light to the Dark Continent. 

Giving Light to Those Who Are in Darkness at Home. 
How Juniors May Reflect the Light at School. 


CEB IS Mi ml alge a 


SoME SAYINGS OF DaAvip LIVINGSTONE 


“The end of the geographical feat is only the beginning 
of the enterprise.” 

“T am a missionary, heart and soul. God had an only 
Son, and he was a missionary. A poor, poor imitation of 
him I am, or wish to be. In this service I hope to live; in it 
I wish to die.” 

“Cannot the love of Christ carry the missionary where 
the slave trade carries the trader?” 

‘““ Anywhere, provided it be forward.” 

“T would venture everything for Christ.” 

“Tf I live, I must succeed in what I have undertaken; 
death alone will put a stop to my efforts.” 

“Tear God and work hard.” (Livingstone’s motto and 
the last public words he uttered in Scotland.) 


CHAPTER XXXIX 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE STORY OF JOHN G. PATON 


II Kings 6:16; Psalms 135:15-17; 148:11-13; Matthew 
28 :20b; Mark 16:15; John 4:5-16; Philippians 4:13; James 
leg 2a: 


Tor MEmMory VERSE 


“And my God shall supply every need of yours according 
to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”—Philippians 4:19. 


THE Lesson Story 


Eleven years after the birth of David Livingstone another 
Scotch boy was born, who was also to be a missionary to 
savages—the heathen cannibals of Polynesia, the islands of 
the southern Pacific Ocean. 

Probably you have read in books of adventure of wonder- 
ful coral islands, where the most beautiful fruit trees grow, 
where the skies are almost always blue, the sand white and 
glistening, and everything seems beautiful. And in your 
stories of adventure you have read, too, how these islands 
are often inhabited by savage men and women who are can- 
nibals, and who attack all newcomers to their land. It was 
to such people as these that John G. Paton went as a mis- 
sionary. 

Paton was born May 24, 1824, near Dumfries, in Scotland. 
His father was a stocking maker, and the family, as so often 
has been the case in the families of the missionaries about 
whom we have studied, was poor. There were only three 
rooms in the little house. One of these rooms was a shop, 
another was the family living room, and the third was the 
room to which the father of the family went after each meal, 
to pray. And from this room he would come out with shin- 
ing face. He was 4 true follower of God. He knew that 
his prayers had been heard. 


372 





. 
‘ e A 
Fe ee ee ee a ee a ee a a a 


ee ee ee 


WOO CUR CHy SCHOOL LESSONS U0 


The little boy, John, went to school, but before he was a 
man he had learned his father’s trade, working from six in 
the morning until ten at night, and at the same time study- 
ing hard at every opportunity. He finally became a teacher 
and next a worker in the Glasgow City Mission. ‘There he 
worked with great success for ten years. ‘Then he decided 
to go as a missionary to the New Hebrides. On April 16, 
1858, he and his wife started on the long journey from 
Scotland. 

Look at the map in your day-school geography. Find 
Australia, where the ship remained for a few days. From 
there the party traveled for twelve days until they came to 
Aneityum, the southernmost island of the New Hebrides 
group. Here the party landed, and it was decided that Mr. 
and Mrs. Paton should go to Tanna, a small island a few 
miles north of Aneityum. 

The natives of Tanna were of a very low grade. Like all 
these island people they were superstitious cannibals. When 
they saw the missionary party they planned to get their 
goods, but to destroy the missionaries themselves. ‘They 
persecuted them in every way, trying to kill them many 
times. They knew that the missionaries’ house, close to the 
shore, was in an unhealthful spot, but they let them build 
there, and in less than six months after their arrival in 
Tanna, Mrs. Paton and the baby, which had been born in 
Tanna, died, and were buried by the missionary. Paton was 
left alone, except for old Abraham, a converted cannibal 
chief from Aneityum, and his wife, Nafatu. But God was 
with him, too, and he did not desert the post. He kept on in 
the midst of discouragements. 

First, it was necessary to build a house on higher ground 
than that first selected, for Paton, like Livingstone in Africa, 
found that fever and ague were two of his greatest enemies. 
He had fourteen attacks before the new house was built. 
The two Christian native helpers fed them on coconut juice, 
and native food, and finally he returned to health. 

But there was one attack upon him after another. There 
was a period of drought. Bananas and yams withered. The 
missionary and his helpers were blamed and sentenced to 
death unless rain fell, but it came and they were saved. They 
were blamed for the death of a chief, but were saved because 


374 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


one of the warrior chiefs declared, ‘“ The man that kills Missi 
[the name they had given to Mr. Paton] must first kill me; 
the men that kill the mission teachers must first kill me and 
my people, for we shall stand by them and defend them until 
death.”” Again, one New Year’s Day two men with painted 
faces came to the hut, demanding medicine for a sick boy. 
This was just a pretense, however, and when they were let 
into the house, they -threatened the missionary with their 
killing stones and their clubs. But Paton’s two dogs sprang 
upon them and drove them off. 

Finally one night the little church building was set on fire. 
The reed fence between the church and the house was ablaze 
next. Soon the house itself must catch! 

Paton seized an empty, useless revolver, and an American 
tomahawk. He rushed to the blazing fence, to chop it away. 

“ Kall him! kill him!” yelled the savages. 

“ Dare to strike me, and my Jehovah God will punish you,” 
Paton answered. “ We love you all and for doing you good 
you want to kill us. But our God is here now to protect us 
and to punish you.” 

At that very moment there was a terrible rushing, roaring 
sound. God had protected his servant who trusted in him. 
It was the tornado, the terror of all the islands. It burst in 
tremendous fury upon them, the wind beat back the flames, 
and there was a deluge of rain which put out the fire. 

The natives were frightened. “This is Jehovah’s rain! 
Truly their Jehovah God is fighting for them!” they cried, 
and in a panic they rushed away. 

And in the morning there was a ship in sight, steaming 
toward the island! It was an English vessel, from Aneityum, 
and in it Paton left the island where he had been treated so 
badly. But in four years he returned to the New Hebrides, 
to take up again his work among the savages. 


HANDWORK 


Perhaps the class can make a poster, representing a scene 
on a coral island, with palm trees, native huts, and so on. 
Make the lower part of the poster of light Manila paper, 
to represent sand; the upper part, of blue for the bright blue 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS SES) 


of the sky. Cut black silhouettes of trees, native huts, the 
sun, which blazed in the sky, and a few figures of people. 


Mar Work 


Put on the blackboard a map of the New Hebrides, and 
mark particularly the islands of Aneityum and Tanna. 


NoTEBOOK WorK 


Write for your notebook a short account of the first part 
of Paton’s life and work. Perhaps you can find his picture. 
At least you can find or draw a picture of a palm tree, to use 
as your initial decoration. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Finish up and pack the missionary box upon which you 
have been working. 


MrEmMory Work 


“We've a story to tell to the nations, 

That shall turn their hearts to the right, 

A story of truth and sweetness, 
A story of peace and light, 

For the darkness shall turn to dawning, 
And the dawning to noonday bright, 

And Christ’s great Kingdom shall come on earth, 
The Kingdom of love and light.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
THE DIGGING OF THE WELL 
John 4:5-26 
Tue Mrmory VERSE 


“ Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him 
shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall 
become in him a well of water springing up unto eternal 


life.’—John 4:14. 


376 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


THE Lesson Story 


“ How is this?” called the natives of Aniwa, an island of 
the New Hebrides, to one another one day. ‘“ How is this? 
We drove away the Christian missionaries. We killed many 
of them. We stole their goods! But now they have come 
back in a beautiful new ship, bringing other missionaries 
with them! Their Jehovah God makes them kind. Perhaps 
it will be well to learn something about him.” 

Something like this must have been in the minds of the 
people of Aniwa, one day in 1866, when John G. Paton and 
his new wife landed on their island. Aniwa was not far 
from Tanna. It was a little island only nine miles long and 
three and one half across. It had no fresh water, except 
rain water; no native animals except the pig, the dog, and 
the rat; no occupations except warfare. 

But the people of Aniwa were different from the people 
of Tanna. ‘They received the missionaries more kindly. 
They allowed them to build a house, though they insisted 
upon a certain spot. And later the Patons found that this 
was a spot sacred to their gods, who, they thought, would 
kill the missionaries for building there! 

But the seed sown in Tanna had borne some fruit. One 
chief of that savage island, Nowar, had always been friendly 
to Paton. He bound the chief of Aniwa by a promise to 
help the missionary, and this helped in many ways. 


Even in the first days of work Paton succeeded in im-: 


pressing the people. One day, as he was building his house. 
he needed some tools and nails. He took a piece of bark 
and wrote upon it a message. Then he asked an old chief 
Namakei to take it to Mrs. Paton. 

“What do you want?” asked the chief, for the people of 
the New Hebrides knew nothing of writing. They were, in 
this, like the Cree Indians. Mr. Paton himself tells us about 
this. “I replied, ‘The wood will tell her.’ He looked rather 
angry, thinking that I befooled him, and retorted, ‘ Who 
ever heard of wood speaking?’ By hard pleading I suc- 
ceeded in persuading him to go. He was amazed to see her 
looking at the wood and then fetching the needed articles. 
He brought back the wood and eagerly made signs for an 
explanation. Chiefly in broken Tannese I read to him the 





| 


Se —— Fl ,lCUhrhe Ce 


PORIORTCHMURCH SCHOOL LESSONS “Yar 


words, and informed him that in the same way God spoke to 
us through his Book, The will of God was written there, 
and by and by, when he learned to read, he would hear God 
speaking to him from its page, as Mrs. Paton heard me from 
the bit of wood. A great desire was thus awakened in the 
poor man’s soul to see the very Word of God printed in his 
own language. He helped me to learn words and’ master 
ideas with growing enthusiasm. And when my work of 
translating portions of Holy Scripture began, his delight was 
unbounded and his help invaluable. ‘The miracle of a speak- 
ing page was not less wonderful than that of speaking 
wood!” 

Another story of the way in which Mr. Paton won the 
hearts of the people is the way in which he dug a well, which 
supplied water for the needs of the people. 

Aniwa had no springs or streams. As in Bermuda, and 
many other coral islands, the people were dependent on the 
rains for water to drink. Mr. Paton decided to try to dig a 
well. The natives thought that he was crazy, but by bribing 
them with English fishhooks, he persuaded them at first to 
help him; but when the depth of the hole had reached twelve 
feet the sides caved in and they could dig no longer. How- 
ever, Mr. Paton rigged up a sort of derrick, and the natives 
pulled up the loaded pails, while he dug. 

Day after day he dug, his heart sinking, he says, with 
the sinking of the well. But, he says, too, “ The phrase ‘ liv- 
ing water,’ ‘living water,’ kept chiming through my soul like 
music from God, as | dug and hammered away.” 

Finally the hole was thirty feet deep. The natives ex- 
pected to see him fall through to the sea. ‘There was no 
water, as yet, but the soil was deep. 

“To-morrow,” Mr. Paton said, “I think Jehovah God 
will give us water from that hole.” 

“No, Missi,” the chief replied, “ you will never see rain 
coming up from the earth on this island. If you reach water 
you will drop through into the sea and the sharks will eat 
you.” 

“Come to-morrow,” said Paton. 

Early in the morning he descended into the well. He dug 
a small hole two feet deep. Up spurted a stream of water. 
Was it fresh or salt? That was the question. He tasted it. 


5 


37% JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


It was fresh! It was living water from Jehovah’s well! 
He almost fell on his knees there at the bottom of the well, 
to thank God for his goodness. 

When the mud had settled a little he filled a jug and 
handed it up to the natives, telling them to taste it. 

At last the old chief took the jug, shook it, put his finger 
into it, and tasted it. 

“Rain! Rain!) sheashouted., [Truly iteis sai ae 
how did you get it?” 

“Jehovah my God gave it out of his own earth in answer 
to our labor and prayer,” said Paton. “Go and see it spring- 
ing up.” 

But the natives were frightened to go too near. Grasping 
one another by the hand they formed a line and peered in, 
until all had seen the water. 

“Wonderful, wonderful!” they kept exclaiming. “ Won- 
derful is the work of your Jehovah God. The world is 
turned upside down since Jehovah came to Aniwa! Missi, 
what can we do to help you now?” 

Mr. Paton directed them to bring coral blocks with which 
to line the well, and at last a well was built, thirty-four feet 
deep and eight feet wide at the top. This well became an 
object of great pride to the people of Aniwa. They could 
not be sufficiently thankful for it. 

The next Sunday the old chief Namakei preached a sermon 
about the well. His eyes flashed as he spoke: 

“Friends of Namakei, men and women and children of 
Aniwa, listen to my words! Who ever expected to see rain 
coming up through the earth? It has always come from the 
clouds. Wonderful is the work of this Jehovah God. No 
god of Aniwa ever answered prayer as the Missi’s God has 
done. Something here in my heart tells me that the Jehovah 
God does exist, the Invisible One, whom we never heard of 
nor saw until the Missi brought him to our knowledge. ‘The 
coral has been removed, the land has been cleared away, and 
lo! the water rises. Invisible until this day, yet all the same 
it was there. So I, your chief, do now firmly believe that 
when I die, when the bits of coral and the heaps of dust are 
removed which now blind my old eyes, I shall then see the 
invisible Jehovah God with my soul, not less surely than I 
have seen the rain from the earth below. From this day, my 


PONTO RE GHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 379 


people, I must worship the God who has opened for us the 
well, and who fills us with rain from below. Henceforth I 
am a follower of Jehovah God. Let every man that thinks 
with me go now and fetch the idols of Aniwa, the gods which 
our fathers feared, and cast them down at Missi’s feet. ‘The 
Jehovah God has sent us rain from the earth, why should he 
not also send his Son from heaven? Namakei stands up for 
Jehovah.” 

For days after that sermon the people brought to the mis- 
sion house their idols of wood and stone, which were burned, 
or cast into the sea. Aniwa had become Christian. Mr. 
Paton had won the hearts of the people. Through his ex- 
ample they were no longer cannibals, but followers of Christ. 


PuTtTiInG THE LFsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


When John G. Paton was only a young man in Scotland 
he heard the command of Jesus ringing in his ears: “Go ye 
into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole crea- 
tion.” He says that they were his “ marching orders.” But 
Christ’s command was not meant for John G. Paton alone. 
What about you? 

When the people of Aniwa became followers of Christ, 
they brought all their idols to the missionary to be burned. 
There are other idols than those of wood and stone. If there 
is anything that we love more than we love God it is an idol. 
We must give up these things when we become true fol- 
lowers of Christ. 

John G. Paton knew that he was doing what God wanted 
him to do. He trusted him in times of the greatest peril and 
danger. He felt even when he was alone among the heathen, 
as Elisha did when the Syrians were near by, that because 
God was with him, “they that are with us are more than 
they that are with them.” Is that the way in which you feel? 
Or aren’t you certain that you are doing God’s will? 


THE Lesson TRutTH IN Your LIFE 


Jesus told the woman of Samaria that the water which he 
would give her should become a well of water springing up 
unto eternal life. The well which John G. Paton dug in 
Aniwa was truly a well of living water for the heathen. We 


380 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


know about Christ, the living Water. Let us not refuse the 
gift of eternal life which he offers us. Let us accept it as 
gladly as the heathen of Aniwa accepted the living water 
from the well. 


Map Work 


Mark Aniwa on your map. 


Wuat Has HAPPENED IN THE NEw HEsrRIDES 


Dr. Paton’s work for the New Hebrides continued many 
years. He died when he was eighty-one years old, after a 
life of usefulness. Seven years before he died, he told of 
some of the things that had been done in these cannibal 
islands, where he had taught so many years. 

“Our older stations show a marvelous record. On 
Tongoa, Mr. Michelsen admitted to the Lord’s table converts 
from heathenism, to the number of two hundred in the year 
1895 alone; and he has two hundred more in his preparatory 
class. There are thirty native evangelists under him, and 
eighteen hundred and fifty pupils at their mission schools. 
On Nguna and its islets, Mr. and Mrs. Milne have a church 
with seven hundred and fifty communicants, one thousand 
seven hundred ordinary worshipers, thirty native teachers, 
an annual contribution of about eight hundred dollars for 
support of native evangelists, and arrowroot valued at six 
hundred dollars per annum for support of missionaries. 
That church has sent out thirty-eight married couples as 
native evangelists to other islands, who have pioneered for 
Christian missions, and prepared the way for the gospel—a 
church called out of heathendom joyfully sending forth mis- 
sionaries to the heathen. And so on, all round the group— 
Epi, Erromanga, Aneityum. Christ is winning souls out of 
the heathen world. Several of these islands are entirely 
Christian, at least by profession and by outward custom and 
practice. But others are as yet crying through their canni- 
balism for the coming Christ. Four or five great centers 
of heathenism remain untouched. May God spare me to see 
the missionaries planted, who are to break through into these 
fortresses of Satan, and I shall gladly lie down and rest!” 


LK ee 


PENTORS CHURCH SCHOOL “LESSONS 381 


_ EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
LIVING WATER 
Revelation 21 :6; 22:1, 17 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


Many times in the Bible we find that living water was a 
sign from God to his people. When the children of Israel 
longed for water in the desert, God told Moses to strike the 
rock and water for the people to drink would come forth. 
And so God showed that he was among them. 

When the land was suffering from drought at the time of 
Ahab, because of the wickedness of the people, Elijah thes 
prophet prayed, and God sent rain to water the earth. “ Liv- 
ing water ’’ was fresh water, and so the woman at the well 
knew what Jesus meant when he said that God would give 
“living water.” We, too, know what living water is. We 
know how necessary it is for the life of all people and all ani- 
mals and all plants. So Jesus is the living Water which gives 
us eternal life. Let us thank God that he has given us Jesus, 
the living Water of eternal life. 


Tuer CLass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we thank thee for the water of life 
which thou hast given us. Let us take of it freely and 
thankfully, praising God for his goodness to us and to all 
people. Let us try to help in every way those who are tak- 
ing the living water to the people of heathen lands, who need 
itso much. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FOR USE IN THE MEETING 


Exodus 17:5-7; I Kings 17:1; 18:41-45; Isaiah 12:3; 
Proverbs 10:11; Psalms 86:9, 10: 72:18, 19; 135 :15-18. 


Hymns tTHat May Bre Usep IN CoNNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 
“T Heard the Voice of Jesus Say.” 
“ Give, Said the Little Stream.” 
Missionary hymns. 


382 JUNIOR CHORCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


QUESTIONS FoR UsE IN THE MEETING 


1. What were John G. Paton’s “ marching orders”? Do 
they apply to you? 
2. In what way did the well of living water in Aniwa 
help the people to become Christians? 
3. In what way can we follow the example of the Chris- 
tian savages of Aniwa? 
4, Find some likeness between Paton and the following 
missionaries, or between his work and theirs. 
(a) Paton and Carey. 
(6) Paton and Morrison. 
(c) Paton and Judson. 
(d) Paton and Evans. 
(e) Paton and Livingstone. 


‘Topics FoR Discussion oR REPORTS 


Paton’s Marching Orders. 
The Talking Bark. 
A Coral Island and Its People. 
John G, Paton. 
Living Water. 
Geography of the New Hebrides. 
How Juniors May Help to Give the Living Water to 
Others in Our Everyday Life. 
8. How Juniors May Help to Give the Living Water to 
Those Far Away. 


PARAGRAPHS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 

The missionary must show the heathen that God can sup- 
ply every need. 

The changes in the New Hebrides are wonderful. John 
G. Paton tells us: “‘ We give each missionary a station. We 
surround him with native teachers who pioneer amongst the 
villages within reach. His life work is to win that island, or 
that people, for God and civilization. He masters their 
language and reduces it to writing. He translates and prints 
portions of the Bible. He opens schools and begins teach- 
ing the whole population. He trains his converts to become 
church members. He holds the fort and toils and prays until 
the gospel of Jesus has been preached to every creature 
whom he can reach.” 


Sg Sv 


LIVING AS JESUS LIVED 


Sh bane 


hI ve 





CUBE NIEA ONES GB: 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
COURAGE TO DO THE RIGHT 
Daniel, chapter 1 


Tur MEmMory VERSE 


“Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be 
strong.”—I Corinthians 16:13. 


Tue Lesson STorY 


What would you do if you were in a foreign land, far 
from your home, your parents, your friends? Would you 
be.so frightened that you would do just exactly what you 
were told to do, even if it was something forbidden at home, 
or would you try to keep the rules that your mother and 
father had made for you? 

That was the problem which came to a Jewish boy, car- 
ried away captive to Babylon twenty-five hundred years ago. 
Nebuchadnezzar, the great king of Babylon, had attacked 
Jerusalem, the capital city of the Jews. He had been vic- 
torious in the siege, and he carried home with him as captives 
many people of high rank—princes and nobles and those of 
wealth. 

Among these captives there were many boys. It was the 
custom in those days for victorious rulers to train such boys 
to be their attendants. And these chosen captives were well 
treated. [They had comfortable places in which to live, 
schooling, and good food. Babylon was a great and won- 
derful city, full of great treasures, it had great palaces and 
great temples. The people worshiped many gods, but par- 
ticularly the god Marduk. They were well educated. They 
lived luxuriously. 

There were four boys among those taken from Jerusalem: 
to Babylon who were particularly noticeable. ‘They must 


385 


386 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


have been strong, fine-looking boys, for they were among 
those whom the king selected to be trained as his particular 
attendants. Their names were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, 
and Azariah. One day the captives from Palestine were 
summoned before Ashpenaz, the prince whom the king had 
put in charge of them. First he told them that their names 
were to be changed. From this time on they were to be 
called by Babylonian=names. Daniel was renamed Belte- 
shazzar; Hananiah became Shadrach; Mishael was Me- 
shach; and Azariah became Abed-nego. ‘Then they were 
given food to eat from the royal table—wonderful dishes of 
meat, prepared in strange ways; wine, cakes and pastries of 
various sorts, such as they had never seen in Jerusalem, 
Some of the boys from Palestine ate the food greedily. It 
looked so good to them, and it tasted good, too. 

But Daniel knew that to eat such food and to drink wine 
was against the rules which God had given to the Jewish 
people, his followers. He knew that before this food had 
been served to them it had been offered to idols. He knew 
that there was much food that God had forbidden the Jews 
to eat. He and his three friends decided that they would 
not eat it. 

You can imagine how much courage it must have taken to 
make this decision, and how frightened Daniel must have 
been as he asked the steward to allow them to eat more 
simple food than the people of Babylon ate. But he was 
brave. He went to the prince and put the question squarely 
before him. He was so polite and so well behaved as he 
made his request that the prince answered him in the same 
way. 
ay fear my lord the king,” he said, “ who has appointed 
what you are to eat and drink. If you eat other things, and 
then do not look so well as do the other boys of your own 
age, I shall be punished—perhaps even die because I have 
disobeyed the king.” 

When Daniel found that Ashpenaz would not grant his 
request he went to another man, the steward who was in 
charge of their food. He did not ask quite so much this 
time. He asked that he and his friends be allowed to eat 
and drink for ten days what they wanted to eat and drink— 
fresh vegetables and clear water. 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 387 


“Then,” he said, “ you can tell how we look, and if we are 
paler and thinner than those who eat the king’s rich food and 
drink his wine, we will eat and drink those things, too.” 

Daniel made his request so politely that the steward 
granted it. For ten days the four boys denied themselves. 
They ate good food, and drank water. And at the end of 
the time they looked far better and were in far better health 
than were those who had indulged themselves. So after that 
the steward allowed them to do as they wanted and to eat 
those things which they had learned at home in Jerusalem 
that it was right for them to eat. 

And because these four young men obeyed God’s rules and 
tried to do as he had commanded them to do, he “ gave them 
knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom.” ‘To Daniel 
God gave, besides, understanding in visions and dreams. At 
the end of the time of preparation when they were taken be- 
fore King Nebuchadnezzar, they were found in every matter 
of wisdom and understanding, ten times better than all the 
wise men in the king’s realm. 

God had rewarded them for their self-control, as he always 
rewards those who are self-controlled. Clear eyes, clear 
brain, good health—these are the rewards which he gives to 
those who are temperate and moderate, who obey his laws, 
and try to do what they know it is right for them to do. 


Map Work 


Draw on the board a map of Assyria, Babylonia, and 
Palestine and trace the direct way from Jerusalem to 
Babylon. 


NoteBook WorK 


Write in your notebook the story of Daniel the boy, and 
how he kept God’s rules when in a heathen country. 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Do you always try to be obedient to your parents, and to 
keep the rules which they have given you? Try particularly 
this week to follow their rules, as Daniel followed the rules 
given him at home in Jerusalem even when he was in far- 
away Babylon. 


388 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Mermory WorkK 
DARE TO BE BRAVE 


‘“ Dare to be brave, dare to be true, 
Strive for the right, for the Lord is with you; 
Fight with men bravely, fight and be strong 
Christ is your Captain, fear only what’s wrong.” 


> 


SUNDAY SESSION 
EXERCISING SELF-CONTROL 
I Corinthians 9 :24-27; Hebrews 12:1, 2. 
THe Memory VERSE 


“And every man that striveth in the games exerciseth 
self-control in all things. Now they do it to receive a cor- 


ruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.’—I Corinthians 
Sas: 


THE LEsson STORY 


Daniel and his friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed- 
nego, showed when they were in Babylon that they had 
learned the lesson of temperance. Their courage in doing 
what they knew was right proved that they knew the mean- 
ing of the word “ self-control.” 

Do you know, that little person “Self” is the greatest 
tyrant, the worst master that we know, if we let him always 
have his own way? But, on the other hand, he can be a 
very good master, too, if we control him, and train him 
aright. 

Over six hundred years after the days of Daniel, there 
was a man who wrote about self-control—a man about 
whose life we have already studied in our lessons of this 
year, one of the greatest followers of Christ who ever lived, 
one of the greatest preachers and teachers the world has 
ever known—the Apostle Paul. And Paul preached and 
practiced the same doctrine that Daniel had practiced hun- 
dreds of years before. 

Paul wrote about this doctrine in one of his famous letters 
to the people of Corinth. Do you remember where Corinth 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 389 


is? It is far away from Babylon, far from Jerusalem, in 
the countrv of Greece, in the southern part of Europe. 
Greece, you remember, is the country where so much of the 
art and literature of the world began. Read over again Chap- 
ter XXVII, which tells about Paul’s first experiences in 
Greece. Corinth was in the southern part of Greece on the 
Isthmus of Corinth. Find it on the map in your day-school 
geography. It is still one of the famous cities of the world. 

You remember, do you not, that the people of Greece 
were very fond of games—by which they meant foot-racing, 
and chariot-racing, and wrestling, and gladiatorial fights. 
To them they were something like our big college football 
games are to us. Great crowds gathered in the huge 
stadiums, or arenas, thousands of people acclaiming the 
winners in the various sports. And-these winners received 
as their reward only a wreath of laurel or of pine, which 
would fade in a short time. For weeks and months before- 
hand the young men of Greece would prepare for these 
games. No trouble was too great for them to take in get- 
ting ready ; no exercise was too severe. 

At Corinth there were given each year the “ Isthmian 
Games,” called by this name because Corinth was situated 
on an isthmus. And Paul, in writing to the people of Corinth 
about self-control, gave them a comparison that they would 
understand because they knew so well how the young men 
prepared for the games. “ Know ye not that they that run 
in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? Even so run; 
that ye may attain. And every man that striveth in the 
games exerciseth self-control in all things. Now they do it 
to receive a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I 
therefore so run, as not uncertainly ; so fight I, as not beating 
the air: but I buffet my body, and bring it into bondage; lest 
by any means, after that I have preached to others, I my- 
self should be rejected.” All the men who took part in the 
games had prepared themselves for the contest, he said: 
They kept their bodies in good training; they took exercise 
regularly ; they did all in their power to win. And after all, 
what was the prize? Only a wreath, or crown, of leaves 
which would fade in a few days. 

Then he added this lesson: Men do all these things for 
the sake of a “ corruptible crown,” a fading wreath of laurel 


390 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


or of pine. But we, who follow Christ, are trying to win a 
greater crown in heaven, a crown which will never fade. 
Then we should exercise self-control much greater than that 
of those men who took part in the Greek games, for the 
crown which we hope to win is much greater than theirs— 
the crown of eternal life. We must remember, too, that in 
the struggle for the crown of eternal life, each one of us 
can win. There is not only one reward as in the Grecian 
games. There are rewards for each and all when we come 
to the heavenly home. 


PuTTING THE LEsson INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


You Juniors know how the boys on the football team train 
for the games—how they give up certain things to eat which 
would be bad for them; how they go to bed early ; how they 
never, never, smoke cigarettes. They do it to help them win, 
because they are loyal to their school. Can you “ exercise 
self-control” all the time, for the sake of your loyalty to the 
wishes of Christ and for his glory? Try it. 

When you tease mother to let you stay up longer than 
usual at night, when you know that you have to get up to go 
to school in the morning, are you exercising self-control ? 

A boy or a girl, or even a man or a woman, who is self- 
controlled is rare. And the way to be a grown-up who is 
self-controlled is to be a self-controlled boy or girl. Begin 
now, and you won’t have so much trouble when you are 
grown up. 

Temper is another hard master. The boy or the girl who 
is self-controlled never lets his temper get away from him. 


THE Lesson TRutTH IN Your LIFE 


The lesson of self-control is a lesson that every true fol- 
lower of Christ must learn. If we learn it when we are 
Juniors, we will find that when we are men and women, it 
will be easier for us to live as God wants us to live, and 
easier for us to do his will. 


DicKk’s Hkro 


It must not be supposed that he was simply and exclu- 
sively Dick’s hero.. The whole nation delighted to do him 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 391 


honor, and in the little’ white schoolhouse at the Corners 
he was spoken of almost as one would speak of Franklin 
and Webster. Indeed, on one occasion, when Miss Richards 
asked the primary class who was the Father of their coun- 
try, they had chanted in solemn chorus the name of Dick’s. 
hero. 

But Dick felt that in a special sense his hero belonged to 
him. In the first place the boy bore the great man’s name, 
and cherished his cumbrous initials with pride and satisfac- 
tion. Furthermore his father and the famous statesman had 
been friends and classmates at a certain old academy not far 
from Dick’s home. They had exchanged patriotic essays 
and original problems in geometry and even some poetical 
translations of Homer, which Dick read with awe in his 
father’s scrapbook. He secretly looked forward to the day 
when there should come a knock at the door and a voice 
should say: “ Does Dr. Mason live here? I used to go to 
school with him, and I know he will remember me.’ But so 
far Dick had had to content himself with reading the boyish 
letters and scraps of writing kept in the upper drawer of the 
old bookcase. It was of a certain black tin box in this 
drawer that Dick was thinking now, as he sat in the open 
doorway. He had to write a composition about “A Hero 
of Bunker Hill,’ and he knew that in that tin box there was 
an old composition of his father’s that might help him. He 
asked his Aunt Abby about it. 

“Father wrote an essay, once, on ‘The Seventeenth of 
fune,’” he said, “and I suppose he’d let me look at it. Per- 
haps he told about some of the officers. It’s in that tin box 
in the bookcase.” 

“Of course your father would let you read it,” Aunt 
Abby agreed. “I’m glad you know where it is.” 

Aunt Abby settled herself with her mending basket beside 
her, and Dick opened the box with careful fingers. It was 
filled with neatly folded papers, each indorsed in a clear 
round hand. ‘The titles were well known to him, for sev- 
eral of these boyish essays he had read again and again. 
My vHirsty lrout,’? “How 1 Built a Canoe,” (‘The Old 
Swimming Pool ”’—these brought his father’s boyhood very 
near to him. At last he found the paper he was looking for, 
“The Seventeenth of June,” but as he opened its blank yel- 


392 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


low folds a second paper fell out, and Dick caught his 
breath, for there in his hero’s familiar hand were the words 
“A Hero of Bunker Hill.” 


To do Dick justice, this was a genuine surprise to him, 
‘for he had never cared to open that particular paper before. — 
He had expected to find in his father’s essay a few facts 
which might help him to give to his own effort some his- 
torical accuracy ; and here was the very subject written upon 
from a boy’s point of view, it is true, but in what Dick felt 
sure was a masterly way. ‘The clock ticked heavily as Dick 
struggled with his temptation. How easy it should be with 
a little turning and twisting to write something that would 
make Miss Richards proud of him. He could see the pink 
glow in her cheeks and the light in her eyes which always 
came when she was pleased. No one would ever know. 
Aunt Abby didn’t care for such things, and his father didn’t 
even remember that the paper was there or it would have 
been filed with the rest of the hero’s writings. If his father 
had been at home, he would have told him all that he could 
remember—Dick felt sure of that. It would do no harm to 
read the essay. Perhaps he wouldn’t use a word of it; he 
only longed to see what the other boy had made of such a 
subject. Dick stared at the box with unseeing eyes while he 
argued with himself. 

“How easy it would be to begin mine if I only knew what 
he did!” thought Dick. “I don’t believe anybody would 
ever know if I should copy it all.” 


Then Dick’s true self spoke and spoke aloud, but in a 
faint voice that did not sound at all like his own. 


“ Aunt Abby,” said he, “ you’d better take away this box 
and hold on to it until I get my composition done. I’m afraid 
I shall copy something, and I don’t want to.” 

You see, Dick was learning the lesson of self-control. He 
did not yield to temptation. He worked hard and wrote his 
composition for himself. 

How glad he was the next day that he had done so when 
there was a visitor at school to listen to their compositions. 
And when the gentleman spoke to them at the end of the 
period they found that it was the hero for whom Dick had 
been named! Dick felt that the day could not possibly con- 


HUNTORSCOURGHU SCHOOL SLESSONS 393 


tain any more joy than when the speech was finished in 
this way: 

“Tam going to take Dick with me to show me the way to 
his father’s house, for I’ve come too far to run any risks of 
getting lost myself, or of losing Dr. Mason. But I have 
something to say to you before I go. When I was a boy 
about Dick’s age | wrote a composition on the same subject 
that was given to him. If I live to be a hundred, I shall 
never forget how hard | worked over it. I believe I could 
repeat some of it now if I should try; but I shan’t try, for it 
wasn't nearly so good as Dick’s.” 

Dick felt a little uncomfortable at so much praise and re- 
solved to tell the whole story on the way home. It would be 
easier than to hear himself complimented. ‘The thought had 
suddenly flashed across his mind how narrow had been his 
escape from the bitterest disgrace, and his thankfulness was 
tempered by an earnest humility that became him well. 
Bravely he made his confession as the great touring car 
swung smoothly along the dusty highway, and the long 
minute of silence that followed tried his very soul. Was it 
possible that he, William Mason’s son, had come so near be- 
ing a cheat? And was the great day to be spoiled, after all? 

Then Dick’s hero spoke in his big, comfortable voice. 

“ Well, my boy,” he said, “ we all have our battles to fight, 
but every time we win we're just so much stronger for the 
next time, and I think you certainly came out ahead. I’m 
glad you told me, for now we can all celebrate the victory 
together. And what a perfectly magnificent time we are go- 
ing to have!” 

—Adapted from Marrua A. L. LANk. 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
HOW JUNIORS MAY EXERCISE SELF-CONTROL 
Galatians 5 :22-26 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER'S OPENING ADDRESS 
The Bible tells us many things about temperance and 
moderation and self-control. It tells us that we should ex- 
ercise self-control in all things; that whatsoever we do, we 


394 JUNIORNCHURCH SCHOOL ZLESSONS 


should do it to the glory of God. Daniel, even when he was 
a boy, had learned the lesson of self-control. He knew that 
it was better for him to do what was right than to enjoy the 
pleasures of eating and drinking the food of the Babylonians. 
Moses, when he was only a young man, knew that it was 
better to be among the people of God, the children of Israel 
who were downtrodden and oppressed, than to be a great 
prince of the Egyptians> He had a hot temper which he had 
to learn to control before he could become a leader. And 
except for Daniel and his friends, we do not know even the 
names of the princes of Israel who were captives in Babylon. 
We know nothing about the friends that Moses might have 
had in the court of Pharaoh. God helped them to become 
great men, men who had learned to control themselves, for 
no man can become a true leader who does not know how to 
give up often the way which seems pleasantest and to take 
the harder way, which is right. One of the first steps, then, 
in becoming the kind of men and women that God wants us 
to be is to learn self-control. 


Tue Crass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, help us, even while we are only 
Juniors, to learn some of the lessons of self-contfol. Help 
us to choose the right path. Help us to be moderate and 
temperate in everything. Help us to keep from too much 
play, from indulgence in food, from any display of bad 
temper or of sulkiness, which things show that we have not 
learned the lesson of self-control. Help us to learn this les- 
son while we are young. For Jesus’ sake. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Philippians 4:5; Acts 24:25; Galatians 5:23; II Peter 
1 :5-9, 


Hymns THat May BE USED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 
“ Vield Not to Temptation.” 
“O Master, Let Me Walk with Thee.” 
“ Dare to Be a Daniel.” 


Jo he CHURCH SCHOOLTLESSONS 395 


QuESTIONS For Usk 1N THE MEETING 


1. How can a Junior gain self-control ? 

2. How did Daniel show that he had been an obedient 
boy at home? 

3. What can you tell about the Isthmian games at 
Corinth? 

4. Where can a Junior get courage to do the right? 

5. How cana Junior show courage for the right and self- 
control ? 


‘Topics For Discussion or Reports 


1. Suppose That You Were a Prisoner in a Foreign 
Land. Would You Show Courage for the Right? 

2. Keeping Home Rules Away from Home. 

3. How the Greeks and Romans Prepared for Their 
Great Games, 

4. ‘Training for School Days Nowadays. 

5. How a Junior Can Train for Life. 

6. There Is an Old Saying, “ Doing in Rome as the Ro- 
mans Do.” What Does This Mean? 

7. Showing Courage for the Right and Self-Control. 


To Reap DurING THE MEETING 


Habits are very strong masters. If I make it my habit to 
do the right, as Daniel did, I will find that it grows easier 
and easier each day. 

It is as easy to form good habits as it is to form bad 
habits. I will try to form good habits of self-control when 
Iama Junior. Then when I am grown up, I will find that 
self-control is a habit. 

Sometimes it is very hard to do right. But I will try 
always to do it, even when it is hard. Then by being brave 
in the little things which seem hard now, I will find that I 
am more courageous for the right when I grow up. 

Just as I exercise my body muscles in the gymnasium at 
school, I will exercise my courage and my self-control, so 
that they will grow stronger. 


CHAPTER XLI 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
BANDED TOGETHER FOR THE RIGHT 


Jeremiah, chapter 35 


Tur MEMory VERSE 


“ And if a man prevail against him that is alone, two shall 
withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” 
—Fcclesiastes 4:12. 


THE LEsson STORY 


Boy scouts of the present day, and girl scouts, too, know 
what it means to be “ banded together for the right,” for boy 
scouts have all taken the scout oath, promising three things: 

“On my honor I promise that I will do my best— 

1. Todo my duty to God and my country. 

2. Tohelp other people at all times. 

3. To obey the scout law.” 

And if the boys really obey the scout law, it will help them 
to be truthful and honest and polite; obedient to those who 
have authority over them; kind to animals. Probably every 
boy scout in America knows how much easier it is to do all 
these things, when others are trying to do them, too. When 
a group of scouts get into a crowded trolley car, they don’t 
‘scramble for seats. They call out cheerfully, ‘ A scout never 
sits in a crowded car,” and cling to the strap. In trying to 
do right, it certainly is much easier to do things together, 
than when you are all alone, is it not? 

Long, long years before Paul, and even before Daniel, in 
the days when the people of Palestine were ruled by their 
own king, there was a man named Jonadab, the son of 
Rechab. He saw that the people were not obeying God’s 
laws, that they were indulging in too much luxury and in too 
much strong drink. 


396 


JUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 397 


So he called together the members of his family, and he 
made them promise that as long as they lived, as long as 
their children and their grandchildren and great-grandchil- 
dren lived, they would never drink wine; they would never 
live in large cities where there were so many temptations to 
evil; they would always live in tents, watching their sheep 
and cattle. ‘These men called themselves the Rechabites be- 
cause they belonged to the family of Rechab. 

Years and years, even centuries passed by, and the de- 
scendants of Jonadab the son of Rechab remembered the 
promise made to their ancestor. At last the day came when 
the people of Israel had become so wicked that God had to 
punish them. He was punishing them by letting the king of 
Babylon besiege their beautiful city, Jerusalem, and take 
them captive. The Rechabites had come into the city at the 
time of the siege. 

There was a man in Jerusalem who knew that God was 
angry with the people of Israel because of their disobedience. 
‘This man was Jeremiah the prophet. He sent for the Recha- 
bites to come to the Temple. In the preserce of those in 
authority he offered them wine to drink. 

“ We will drink no wine,” the chief of the Rechabites said. 
“We promised our ancestor Jonadab that we would not 
drink wine nor live in cities. We intend to keep our 
promise.” 

What a great lesson that was for the people of Israel who 
had broken God’s laws! They had promised to serve him, 
but they had broken their promise. The Rechabites were 
obedient to their earthly ancestor, but God’s chosen people 
were disobedient to their heavenly Father. 

Jeremiah’s lesson to the people of Israel, the lesson which 
the Rechabites had learned, of obedience to law, is a lesson 
which we in America should learn, too. 

A few years ago, in 1919, the people of the United States 
added a new amendment to the Constitution, an amendment 
which we call “the Prohibition Amendment,” or “the 
Eighteenth Amendment.” All saloons and places where 
liquor and strong drink were sold were supposed to be 
closed. All places where liquor was made were supposed 
to be shut down. But they were not. There were many 
people in the United States who did not obey the law and 


398 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


who broke it constantly. ‘The people who had been banded 
together to fight for prohibition had thought that the struggle 
was over. But they found that this was not so. They found 
that they had to fight to enforce the law, that is, to make 
people obey it. 

Does it not seem a terrible Hae that many of the people 
of the United States should break one of its laws, and should 
even laugh at breaking it? ‘The Rechabites kept the law 
which was made by their ancestor. The Jews did not keep 
the law given them by God. Many of the people of the 
United States are not keeping the law of the United States. 

But if all the Junior boys and girls in the United States 
should feel that they must keep the law and teach their 
younger brothers and sisters to keep the law, in time we 
would have real prohibition in our land; we would be doing 
as did the Rechabites, the descendants of Jonadab—keeping 
the law which was made by those older and wiser than we 
are, about the drinking of strong liquor. If we band our- 
selves together to keep the law and to do right, we can do 
what none of us can do singly. Remember that our Amer- 
ican motto is “ United we stand,” and let us all stand to- 
gether for the right, and for keeping the laws of our govern- 
ment. 


HANDWORK 


Write on the blackboard the words of the Rechabites to 
Jeremiah, “ We will drink no wine.” 


NoteBook WorkK 


Copy in your notebook the following part of the Fight- 
eenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States: 
“The manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating 
liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exporta- 
tion thereof from the United States and all territory subject 
to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby 
prohibited.” 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Resolve this week to keep the rules of your school and of 
your parents. Be obedient to these laws and you will be 
obedient to good citizenship laws as you grow older. 


WUNIORS CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 399 


Mermory Work 


To the National Flag: “I pledge allegiance to my flag and 
to the Republic for which it stands: one nation, indivisible, 
with liberty and justice to all.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
UNSELFISH SERVICE 
Nehemiah 5:14-19 


THE MEMoRY VERSE 


“The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to 
minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”—Matthew 


20 :28. 
THe Lesson STory 


During the days of the Great War, there were many pa- 
triotic men of great brain and heart who wanted to serve 
the Government. ‘There were many men who could have 
made a great deal of money for themselves, who offered to 
serve our country for a dollar a year, which was really giv- 
ing their great skill and all their great power to the nation, 
because they were true patriots. 

Over two thousand years ago, at about the time when 
Daniel lived, there was a “ dollar-a-year”” man among the 
Jewish exiles in Persia. His name was Nehemiah, and like 
Daniel, he held an important position in the Persian govern- 
ment, for he was cupbearer in the court of King Artaxerxes, 
The position of cupbearer gave him great authority and in- 
fluence with the king. He probably lived very luxuriously, 
eating the same food that the king ate, and having all things 
rich and fine. 

And yet Nehemiah gave up all these things. When he 
heard that his beloved city of Jerusalem was in trouble, he 
gave up his good position in Persia; he asked the king for 
aid and went back to Palestine to try to help the people and 
the land which he loved so much. He was a true patriot, and 
wanted to aid his country in every way. 

He struggled hard to “ make things go” in Palestine. He 


400 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


encouraged the people to build up the wall which had been 
broken down at the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s siege one 
hundred and forty-four years before. He and his servants 
toiled at the work, inspecting it each day, arranging how 
the people should be placed, teaching them God’s will for 
them. And yet all this time he used for the people the 
money which he received from the king for himself. He 
supplied food from hissown table and from his own money 
for those who were working on the city walls. He “ de- 
manded not the bread of the governor, because the bondage 
was heavy upon this people.” He was a “ dollar-a-year ” 
man, 

Nehemiah’s example of unselfish service, the example of 
many men in our own times, can stand before us all as what 
we should like to do. But Jesus’ example is, of course, 
ithe supreme example of unselfish service. He came into the 
world from the heavenly home, to save the people of 
the world from sin. He came not to be ministered unto, but 
to minister. He suffered even death on the cross for the sake 
of others. And as we think of Jesus and his love for all the 
people of the world, we should try to follow his example and 
to give our services to others, not for what they can do for 
us, but because we want to follow Jesus’ example and to be 
like him. 


PutrtTING THE LESSON INTO THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


‘Here is how pupils in one school performed unselfish 
service for others. 

“In our school we formed a club in order to put into prac- 
tice some rules of helpfulness that we have studied about, 
but might not think to do. We decided upon several chores 
like this: ‘1 was helpful to some little child’; ‘I said “ good 
morning,” “thank you ” each day this week’; ‘I tried to be 
neat and cheerful.’ Next a name was selected. ‘ The Light 
Crusade’ was chosen, with the motto of the Junior Red 
Cross, ‘I serve.’ Every citizen should carry this in his mind 
and heart. 7 

‘Fach club member made a book and decided upon special 
topics for study. Some were: Living Temple, The Home 
as a Center, My Community, What I Owe to My Country, 


JUNIORSCHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS - 401 


My State, Lives of Great Men. Clippings were pasted in 
books, and others mounted on papers for discussion. 

“TI like especially the lesson about the home. We made a 
list of home scenes, buildings, furnishing a home, harmon- 
izing in the home. We decided that a good home is the 
home which has a good home spirit, although the cooking, 
furniture, and good taste help, too. 

“The candle which is the insignia is lit on special occa- 
sions. Some deeds of service that the club rendered are: 
taking flowers and fruit to the sick; making a first-aid cabi- 
net, a swing and a see-saw for little children; serving cocoa, 
and other deeds.” 


THE Lesson TRUTH IN Your LIFE 


Unselfish service brings a great satisfaction and a feeling 
of happiness that comes in no other way. 


READY TO SERVE IN MopERN TIMES 


Did you ever hear the name of Florence Nightingale, the 
woman who gave her life to service for others, in the days 
of the war between England and Russia, which was fought 
in 1854—the Crimean War? 

Florence Nightingale was born in Derbyshire, England, in 
1820. Her parents were well-to-do, and she was given every 
luxury. But she was like Nehemiah; she longed to serve, 
and to do something for others. Even as a child she wanted 
to help people who were in need. Her father had many 
shepherds on his estate. Some of them were very poor, and 
Florence often visited them, taking them food and medicine, 
when they were sick. As she became older she taught a 
Sunday-school class of girls. She visited the London hos- 
pitals, and saw how unskillfully the sick people were treated 
there. The more she learned about nursing, the more she 
felt that she wanted to help sick people by giving them good 
care. She worked hard to find out the best ways of doing 
this, visiting hospitals in England, and all through Europe. 

And so, when war broke out between England and Russia, 
she was ready. There was no Red Cross in those days to 
care for the wounded soldiers, such as there was during the 


402 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Great War. Sixty per cent of the soldiers were dying. 
Something had to be done at once, and Miss Nightingale was 
asked to get together a band of nurses. In six days she was 
ready with thirty-eight nurses. They set off to the front. 
There she found that things were in a terrible condition. 
There were two miles of sick and wounded men lying in 
barracks. There was poor food, and not enough of it. Men 
were dying by the hundreds. 

“The first day on duty Miss Nightingale worked twenty 
hours, and the next day the same. The hospital was cleaned 
up, windows were opened for ventilation, and additional win- 
dows were cut into the walls, a laundry was set up, and a 
diet kitchen established. ‘In about two weeks that dreadful 
den of dirt, pestilence, and death’ had vanished and in its 
place stood a building, light and well aired throughout, where 
patients lay on spotless cots, ate appetizing food from clean 
dishes, had their baths and their medicine at regular inter- 
vals, and never for an hour lacked any attention that would 
help their recovery. 

“It was a common sight to see Miss. Nightingale by a 
soldier’s bedside at two o’clock in the morning. When the 
nurses were off duty she would go through the wards, lamp 
in hand, to see to the comfort of the men. As she passed by 
they would kiss her shadow as it crossed their pillows. 

“Within a few weeks the deaths were reduced from sixty 
per cent to one per cent. Reports of her work went back to 
England and she became the nation’s heroine, loved and 
revered by all the soldiers. When the war was over and she 
planned to return to England a great welcome was prepared 
for her, but she slipped home unannounced. A great fund 
of fifty thousand pounds, or two hundred and fifty thousand 
dollars, was raised as a testimonial to her. This she agreed 
to accept with the understanding that it would be used to 
found a hospital. Accordingly, St. Thomas’ Hospital in Lon- 
don was built. This became a school for the training of 
nurses, 

“Now Miss Nightingale began to see her dreams come 
true. ‘The hospitals of England were reformed, nurses’ 
training schools were established, nursing became an honor- 
able profession for women. The National Nursing Associa- 
tion was formed to provide skillful nurses for the sick poor 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 403 


in their homes, books of great value to her profession, espe- 

cially her ‘ Notes on Nursing,’ were printed and circulated. 
“The modern hospital and the trained nurse of to-day are 

monuments to the noble service of Florence Nightingale.” 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
WAYS IN WHICH JUNIORS MAY SERVE 
Matthew 25 :31-46 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’Ss OPENING ADDRESS 


We Juniors want our lives to amount to something. We 
are planning, all of us, to count for something in the world. 
We want to help on the world’s work and to do those things 
which will count most for good. Now is the time for us to 
prepare to do these things. We are going to think to-day of 
ways in which we can help; in which we can best follow the 
example of the Master whom we serve, Jesus Christ, our 
Lord. Let us ask him to help us in what we mean to make 
of our lives. 


THE CLASS PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, help us we pray thee, to serve thee 
in serving others, and to do good work in the world and for 
the world. Some of us may help as missionaries, some as 
ministers ; but if we are called to other lines of work, help 
us to serve thee there, too, and to follow the example of 
Jesus, who came not to be served, but to serve others. For 
his sake, we ask. Amen. 


VERSES FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


Meclimothy 2315573140155, Psalm.100:24) John 42:26; 
Galatians 5:13; Romans 12:1; Revelation 22:3. 


Hymwns THat May Bs UsEpD IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“ Serve the Lord with Gladness.” 
“Can a Little Child Like Me?” 


404 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“Father, Lead Me Day by Day.” 
“’True-Hearted, Whole-Hearted.” 
“The Wise May Bring Their Learning.” 
“O Jesus, I Have Promised.” 


QUESTIONS For UsE IN THE MEETING 


How can a Junior serve Christ and the world? 
How did Nehemiah serve his nation? 
How can a Junior serve his nation? 
Is it easier to do right when there are others banded 
together with you, or when you are the only one fighting on a 
side? Why? 

5. Is ita Junior’s duty to try to be neat? Why? 

6. What is a Junior’s duty in regard to throwing papers 
and rubbish in the street? 


OND 


‘Topics FOR DISCUSSION OR REPORTS 


Serving the Nation by Obeying Its Laws. 
Serving God by Obeying His Laws. 
Serving God by Helping Others. 

The Junior Red Cross. 

How Juniors Can Serve Their Schools. 
How Juniors Can Serve Their Cities. 
How Juniors Can Serve Their Parents. 


SS ee 


AN ANAGRAM FoR You To SOLVE. “THE NAME OF 
OnE WuHuo SERVED 


“TF lit on, cheering angel.” 


One Junior Composition Asout How a JUNIOR 
MAY. SERVE 


“The problems that boys and girls solve in school life will 
help them to solve the problems of later life; problems such 
as those relating to immigration laws, the Negro question, 
and the modern family. 

“The true American boy or girl takes part in the common 
interests in school life, and so is prepared for the larger 
community life, later. When he keeps himself physically fit, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 405 


he is saving money, time, and lives for his country. In later 
life he will encourage public hygiene. . . . When he culti- 
vates a taste for athletics or for other games, or for music, 
or for good moving pictures, he will later enjoy recreation 
after working hours and encourage good forms of recreation 
for the children. 

“When he keeps his books, papers, desk, floor, and school 
grounds neat, he is interested in beautiful surroundings. 
Later he will be able to help to beautify his home. 

“When he plays fair in all games and when he possesses 
self-control and reliability, he becomes more useful to his 
country, and makes it so that people find it easier to trust 
each other. He is preparing for business life in the later 
years and for taking his part in the government. 

‘When he shows obedience to the will of the leader, which 
is teamwork, he is working for the good of all his classmates, 
in school spirit.” 

Another essay: 

“The true American citizen is the citizen who always con- 
ducts himself with regard for the welfare of lis community 
and codperates with his fellow citizens to that end. The 
welfare of both the citizens and the community depends upon 
health, education, recreation, transportation, churches, and 
service; therefore the true American citizen will be inter- 
ested in all these factors. 

“The man who has good health but takes no care of him- 
self is not a true citizen. The health of a community de- 
pends largely upon the pure-food and other health laws and 
how they are enforced. Therefore a true American citizen 
always obeys these laws, and helps to enforce them. 

“ A true American citizen always regards education as one 
of the most important factors in the making of a true citizen. 
A man or a woman who can hardly read or write intelli- 
gently is not a good or desirable citizen. He also knows that 
healthful recreation is needed as much in making a true citi- 
zen as is education; therefore when the community needs 
money for playgrounds, swimming pools, or Boy Scouts, the 
true citizen always pays his share. 

“A successful town must have good facilities for trans- 
portation in the form of railroads, trolley lines, and paved 
streets, and for these a good citizen will do all he can. 


406 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


“A true American citizen does not sell his vote, and always 
casts his ballot. A prominent man once said, ‘One of the 
nation’s greatest obstacles is the careless voter who does not 
think it worth his while to go to the polls.’ 

“A person is not a true American citizen if he does not 
obey the laws of his country. He should not only obey them 
but uphold them and respect them and remember that even 
if he does not like a law, the majority ef the people in the 
community want it, or it would not have been passed. He 
realizes that the greatest influences in developing law-abiding 
citizens are the churches, and these cannot exist without 
workers and supporters. 

“ A man that is careful about fires is a true citizen. If he 
takes care of all his rubbish he is a good citizen, but if he 
fails he is a menace to his neighbors. 

“Therefore we find that the true American citizen stands 
for his country in times of peace and war, and does what 
he can to benefit his town, his state, and his nation at all 
times.” 


RoosEVEL?’s IDEAL FOR AN AMERICAN 


“To be a good American one must work hard; he must 
not be a coward or a weakling, a bully, a shirk, or a prig. 
He must work hard and play hard. He must be clean- 
minded and clean-lived and able to hold his own under all 
circumstances, and against all evil comers. It is only on 
these three conditions that he will grow to be the kind of 
man of whom America can really be proud. Hit the line 
hard, don’t foul, and don’t shirk; this makes all citizens 
stronger.” 


Cea Rex lil 
WEEK DAY SESSION 
THE. PROMISED LAND 

Deuteronomy 8 :7-20 
THe Memory VErsé 


“ Righteousness exalteth a nation ; 
But sin is a reproach to any people.”—Proverbs 14:34. 


Tue Lesson Story 


The words which we study in our lesson to-day were 
spoken by Moses to the people of Israel who had been wan- 
dering in the desert for forty years before they were allowed 
to enter the wonderful land which God had promised to 
them as their own—the land of Palestine. They had failed 
to trust him, and had been punished in this ways But at last, 
when the time decreed by God had come, they crossed the 
Jordan River into the Promised Land. 

The land given to the children of Israel was a wonderful 
land. Look again over the material which was given in 
Chapter I, and read the description of Palestine as it was 
nineteen hundred years ago, which was written by a great 
modern Jewish scholar, Edersheim: 

“Palestine combined every variety of climate, from the 
snows of Hermon and the cool of Lebanon to the genial 
warmth of the Lake of Galilee and the tropical heat of the 
Jordan Valley. Accordingly not only the fruit trees, the 
grain and garden produce known in our colder latitudes were 
found in the land, along with those of summer climes, but 
also the rare spices and perfumes of the hottest zones. Simi- 
larly, it is said, every kind of fish teemed in its waters, while 
birds of most gorgeous plumage filled the air with their song. 
Within such small compass the country must have been 
unequaled for charm and variety. On the eastern side of 


407 


408 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


Jordan stretched wide plains, upland valleys, parklike forests, 
and almost boundless corn and pasture lands; on the western 
side were terraced hills, covered with olives and vines, de- 
licious glens, in which sweet springs murmured, and fairy- 
like beauty and busy life, as around the Lake of Galilee. In 
the distance stretched the wide sea, dotted with spreading 
sails ; here was luxurious richness, as in the ancient posses- 
sions of Issachar, Manasseh, and Ephraim; and there, be- 
yond these plains and valleys, the highland scenery of Judah, 
shelving down through the pasture tracts of the Negeb, or 
South country, into the great and terrible wilderness. And 
over all, so long as God’s blessing lasted, were peace and. 
plenty.” 

Truly Palestine was a wonderful country, but to us who 
live in the United States, God has given a land that is still 
more wonderful. Our land is much larger than Palestine, 
for that entire country, you remember, was just about as 
large as one little corner of the United States, about as 
large, for instance, as Vermont or New Hampshire. We, 
too, have a “land flowing with milk and honey,” a land to 
which all the blessings of Palestine have been given, and 
many more. | 

But though Palestine was such a beautiful land, the people 
forgot God and his teachings, and, because they did not 
obey his commands, it was necessary for him to punish them, 
and to send them far from their homeland, and to scatter 
them among foreign peoples. 

The lesson taught by the disobedience and the punishment 
of the Jews is a lesson that we, too, should learn. We love 
our country as the Jews loved theirs. We want it to be the 
greatest and most lasting country in the world. And we 
want to help to make our country what God wants it to be. 
We do not want it to go back. We want it always to go 
forward, and to become greater and greater. 

There are many ways in which our country may grow, 
just as a person grows. It may become greater materially— 
that is, it may become greater in things. It may become 
greater intellectually—that is, it may become greater in 
things of the mind. And it may become greater spiritually 
—that is, in things of the spirit. 

There is no doubt that our country grows greater each 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 409 


year in things. Each year our land becomes richer and 
richer. We have richer harvests from our grainfields; we 
have greater railroads; we have taller skyscrapers. And 
there is no doubt that we are growing also in things of the 
mind, for our public schools, with their trained corps of 
teachers, show this. But as our country grows “in wisdom 
and in stature,” is it growing also “in favor with God and 
men”? ‘That is where you Christian Juniors can help, where 
you can show that you are the “hope of the world.” You 
can stand for all the good things in our country which you 
know that Christ would approve. You can stand for seeing 
that the Prohibition Amendment and all other laws of our 
land are carried out. You can be firm for righteousness and 
justice and truth, and ail those things which exalt a nation. 
You can be a patriotic American—a Christian citizen. If all 
the Juniors in America would do their part, in a hundred 
years our country would have progressed very far, and 
would become a truly Christian nation. 


HANDWORK 


Trace on paper a map of the United States as given in 
your day-school geography. ‘Then trace from the same map 
the State of New Hampshire or of Vermont. The area of 
Vermont is 9565 square miles; of New Hampshire 9305 
square miles; of Palestine, between 10,000 and 11,000 square 
miles. ‘The area of the entire United States, not considering 
Alaska and our island possessions, is 3,000,000 square miles. 
This comparison will make it possible to see how much 
greater our country is in size than Palestine, and how many 
more people we can accommodate. 


NoteBook WorkK 


Divide a page of your notebook in halves. Put at the top 
of one side the words ‘“‘ The Promised Land.” At the head 
of the other side, write “Our Own Land.” After you have 
read Deuteronomy 8 :7-20, write in the first column the bless- 
ings promised to Israel. Then, if we have had these bless- 
ings in our own land, write them in the second column, 
adding as many more as you can think of. 


410 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


EXPRESSIONAL ACTIVITY 


Keep your eyes open this week to see what you can of the 
blessings of our country. Try each day to do something 
which will show that you are a patriotic American citizen, 
who wants to make our nation truly great. 


MrEmMory WorK 
A CREED 


“Tord, let me not in service lag, 
Let me be worthy of our flag; 
Let me remember, when I’m tried, 
The sons heroic who have died 
In freedom’s name, and in my way 
Teach me to be as brave as they. 


“Nnoall eatin alll do 
Unto our flag I would be true: 
For God and country let me stand, 
Unstained of soul and clean of hand. 
Teach me to serve and guard and love 
The starry flag which flies above.” 


SUNDAY SESSION 
SIGNS OF PROGRESS IN OUR COUNTRY 
Tsara holed 5 Oe llesG2. 2993 


Tur Memory VERSE 
“The path of the righteous is as the dawning light, 
That shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” 
—Proverbs 4:18. 


Tue Lesson STORY 


One of the greatest men that lived in America in the time 
of the Revolutionary War was Benjamin Franklin. And 
one of the greatest things that Franklin did was the dis- 
covery which he made about electricity. Yet—suppose it 
were possible for Benjamin Franklin to come to our country 
to-day. Would he know as much about electric light, or the 
telegraph, or the telephone, or the radiophone as you do? 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 411 


Wouldn’t he have to learn many things that it seems to you 
that you have always known? And just think how Fulton 
would feel about our great steamships, and Morse about our 
wireless telegraphs, and Marcus Whitman about our great 
railroads to the Oregon country. Truly, there has been much 
progress in our land since it first became independent, and 
there are many signs of progress to-day. Boys and girls are 
familiar with many things that would have seemed like 
marvels even to the great men of the past. 

The Prohibition Amendment is a sign of progress. A 
hundred years ago, no one thought that a prohibition law 
for the whole United States would ever come to pass. And 
yet it has come, though it is not yet carried out as we should 
like it to be. | 

The Disarmament Conference. Another sign of prog- 
ress in our land, and in all the lands which took part in it, 
has been the Disarmament Conference. Think how our an- 
cestors would have felt about that—how would they have 
looked upon the question of destroying great warships, of 
making our army and navy smaller, of trusting the honor of 
other nations? 

Religious Education. There is a great awakening in 
the world of religion. People everywhere are asking how to 
make our country more Christian, and more a nation of 
which God would approve. And the hope of the world, 
Juniors, is in you, boys and girls who are growing up. It is 
your duty to live honest, honorable lives and to see that not 
only you yourselves grow, but that the nation of which we 
are so proud, as it grows “in wisdom and stature,” grows 
also “in favor with God and men.” 


Purtinc THE LEssSoN INTo THE LIFE OF THE CLASS 


Read over again the verses given at the beginning of the 
chapter. Of course Isaiah was not referring to the United 
States, but to Israel. Does it not seem to you, however, that 
he might have been making a prophecy about America, in 
verses 4, 5, 10, 11? It is for us to make true the words of 
Isaiah 62:2, 3. We must live so that all nations shall see our 
righteousness, and that we shall be “a crown of beauty in 
the hand of Jehovah.” 


412 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


The eyes of all the world are on our country. Let us see 
to it that we set a good example to those who are following 
in our footsteps, and looking to us for teaching. 

The boys and girls of to-day will be the men and women. 
of to-morrow. Learn now to do right, and when you are 
grown up, you will keep on in the same way. 


Tue Lesson TRUTH IN Your LIFE 


Boys and girls of to-day have as their birthright the 
knowledge of many things that were unknown to our an- 
cestors. It is our duty, then, to build on these foundations 
and to make still higher and stronger the nation for which 
the founders of our country laid the foundations so truly 
and so well. 


MeEmory Work 
Psalm 67 


“ God be merciful unto us, and bless us, 
And cause his face to shine upon us; 
That thy way may be known upon earth, 
Thy salvations among all nations, 
Let the peoples praise thee, O God; 
Let all the peoples praise thee. 
Oh let the nations be glad and sing for joy; 
For thou wilt judge the peoples with equity, 
And govern the nations upon earth. 
Let the peoples praise thee, O God; 
._ Let all the peoples praise thee. 
The earth hath yielded its increase: 
God, even our own God, will bless us. 
God will bless us; 
And all the ends of the earth shall fear him.” 


Tut Hops oF THE WorLpD 


Girls and boys of America, you are the hope of the world! 

Not men and women of America, not even young men and 
women of America, but girls and boys! You who carry the 
unblunted swords of ten-to-seventeen, you are the ones who 
are the hope of the world. Not to die for the world, but to 
live for it, to think for it, to work for it; to keep sharp and 
unstained by rust the splendid sword of the spirit! 

It is not only because you are yourselves fine and true 


WO MLORAGIURGH: SCHOOL LESSONS 413 


and upright and daring and free, young America, that the 
world finds its hope in you. The world knows the men, the 
great deeds, and the principles, greater than men or deeds, 
that have made this America of yours and mine. ‘The world 
knows that in you, whether your ancestors came over in the 
Mayflower three hundred years ago, or in the steerage of a 
liner twenty years ago, lives the spirit of a great tradition. 
The world puts its hope in you. 


What now does the world ask you to do to fulfill that 
hope? It asks you, first of all, to sit down and think about 
your country; and then, when you have taken thought, it 
asks you to juinp to your feet and do something ! 


“What can we do?” you ask. You? You can do every- 
thing. . . . Your minds are like a fresh horse, crazy to take 
six bars. You are the hope of the world, because you have 
enthusiasm and ginger, because you feel, and you haven’t yet 
forgotten how to think. 

What can you do? 

The newspapers are full, these days, of what your city, 
your state, your nation are doing for the protection of their 
citizens and the defense of American principles abroad. Let 
it be your part to find out what your city, your state, your 
nation are doing for the welfare of their citizens and the 
upholding of American principles at home. 

What can you do? 

You can read about these things and urge your friends to 
read about them, and think about them, and talk about them 
and argue about them, and make bad men your enemies be- 
cause of the things you say and do about them. 

What can you do? 

You can be Paul Reveres and Pauline Reveres, waking 
your sleeping fellows to a recognition of the needs of this 
country and of their own opportunity .. . in your school, 

. and through the countryside. ... You can, each of 
you, begin now to make yourself, what every American 
should be, a vital part of the machinery of the American 
Government. 


414 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


To you, girls and boys . . . is given a work every bit as 
grand as dying for your country; and that is, living for the 
highest interests of your country! 

Those interests are the interests of democracy. 

If, therefore, you live for the highest interests of America, 
you live at the same time for the highest interests of the 
world. In that struggle, the goal is neither nationalism nor 
internationalism. It is democracy. It is a lasting peace 
among nations; and, as far as is humanly possible, amity 
among men. 

Go to it! Go toit, girls and boys of America! 

You are the hope of the world! 

—Herman Hagedorn, in, “You Are the Hope of the World.” 


ee 


EXPRESSIONAL SESSION 
TOR HORE OFS) Ena © Ria 
Philippians 4:8, 9 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE LEADER’S OPENING ADDRESS 


We children of the world have a great responsibility. We 
must see to it that our nation does not go backward. We 
must try to move forward, and to take with us everyone in 
the world. We must move forward all along the line, spread- 
ing the news of the gospel far and wide, telling the good 
tidings to those who still sit in darkness. We have studied 
this year lessons about the life of Jesus, about the lives of 
the early heroes of the Church, about the lives of great mis- 
sionaries. If we try to follow the example of all these men 
who were so great in their love for God and men, we shall 
lead the world to better things as they did. Let us ask God 
to help us who are the hope of the world, to go in the right 
direction, to go onward and upward to the perfect day. 


Tur Cass PRAYER 


Our Father in heaven, we know that the future of the 
world will rest with the children who are thy followers. We 
love thee and want to help others to love thee. Help us to 
do the things we should, and to be kind and good to others, 


JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 415 


so that they may know we are following thee, and trying to 
be like Jesus, our Lord and Saviour. In his name, we ask. 
Amen. 


VERSES FOR UsE IN THE MEETING 
Philippians 3:14; Matthew 5:14, 16; Leviticus 25:10. 


Hymns THAT May Br USED IN CONNECTION 
WITH THE MEETING 


“ Move Forward, Move Forward.” 

“ Forward Be Our Watchword.” 

“ Forward, Singing Glory.” 

“My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less.” 


QUESTIONS FoR USE IN THE MEETING 


1. How can a Junior best help the world to move for- 
ward? 

2. Name some things in which America has moved for- 
ward since Revolutionary days. 

3. Name some things in which America has moved for- 
ward since the Civil War. 

4. Name some things in which America has moved for- 
ward since you can remember. 


‘Topics FoR DiscussION oR REPORTS 


Pressing on Toward the Goal. 
The Hope of the World. 

Signs of Progress in Our School. 
Signs of Progress in Our Town. 
Signs of Progress in Myself. 


See sone 


To READ IN THE MEETING 


There is a story told of a noble Roman mother of the 
days of long ago, who was asked to show her jewels. She 
called her sons to her and introduced them. “ These are my 
jewels,” she said. They were her most valuable possession. 
So the children and the young people of the world are its 


416 JUNIOR CHURCH SCHOOL LESSONS 


jewels, its most valuable possession. But these jewels be- 
come valueless if they do not shine in the light of Christ. 


Jesus called his disciples the light of the world, and told 
them to let their light shine before men. There would be 
no hope in the world if there were no light. We are his 
disciples, just as well as the men to whom he spoke in the 
past. Let us show our‘light and give our hope to those wha 
sit in darkness. 


“T have lived, sir, a long time; and the longer I live, the 
more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs 
in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the 
ground without his notice, is it possible that an empire can 
rise without his aid? We have been assured, sir, in the 
sacred writings that—‘ Except the Lord build the house, 
they labor in vain that build it.’ I firmly believe this.” 


—BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 


“Tt is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task 
remaining before us: that from these honored dead we take 
increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last 
full measure of devotion: 

“That we here highly resolve that these dead shall not 
have died in vain; that this nation, under God, shall have a 
new birth of freedom; and that government of the people, 
by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the 
earth.”—ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 


When did Abraham Lincoln speak these words? 























